LONDON — After an unforgettable performance in the 4x100-meter relay, Usain Bolt of Jamaica wanted a souvenir with which to remember his second Olympics. His grip tightened around his object of choice: not a trinket featuring the London Games’ omnipresent one-eyed mascots, but the baton he had received from his training mate, Yohan Blake, and carried across the finish line in world-record time moments earlier.

The Jamaican team that Bolt anchored had set a world record of 36.84 seconds to edge the United States squad, which tied the Jamaicans’ previous world mark of 37.04. Only after he had secured his sixth gold medal in two Olympics, completing a triple-double more impressive than any posted by a United States Olympic men’s basketball Dream Teamer in 1992 or now, did Bolt lose a piece of history that he considered his.

An official asked for the baton, and Bolt grudgingly relinquished it. His smile disappeared shortly before he did inside the tunnel leading to and from the Olympic Stadium track. It was no way for a legend to exit the world’s stage, and by the time the medals ceremony was held, Bolt had his baton back.

“He said I have to give it back, or the relay would be disqualified,” Bolt said. “That was kind of weird.” He added, “I guess somebody talked to the guy and said you need to give him the baton.”