New Delhi [India], January 18 : Jamaican athletics icon and eight-time Olympic gold medalist Usain Bolt expressed his desire for a possible return to the Olympics as a cricketer for Jamaica, jokingly saying that he has not played the sport for a long while and "will be ready" if called upon by the Jamaican cricket team.
Bolt, 39, grew up in the Caribbean, a cricket-crazy region and in Jamaica, which has produced cricket legends like George Headley, Michael Holding, Courtney Walsh, Chris Gayle, Andre Russell, among others. As per the Olympics.com, Bolt was once an aspiring fast bowler before he made a name for himself as one of the greatest sprinters of all time, with eight Olympic golds and 11 World Championship golds to his name.
Cricket was what Bolt liked before his cricket coach encouraged him to switch to track-and-field in high school. Eight years since the star athlete ended his illustrious Olympic career, the world is still hoping that someday, the 39-year-old will compete yet again. However, the 100 m, 200 m and 4x100 m record-holder has no plans of returning to the racing track.
However, speaking to Esquire Magazine, Bolt jokingly said that he would play cricket if approached by the Jamaican team.
"I am happily retired from professional sport. I have not played cricket in a long time, but if they call, I will be ready! [Laughs]," Bolt told Esquire as quoted by Olympics.com.
Bolt retired as an undisputed legend in his discipline in 2017, securing 100 m and 200 m titles in three back-to-back Olympics, the 2008, 2012 and 2016 edition and is still the proud owner of 100m (9.58 seconds) and 200m (19.19s) world records he set in 2009.
Six teams, each in the men's and women's categories, are set to battle for medals in an upcoming tournament. With 90 athlete quotas per tournament, participating nations can name squads of up to 15 athletes.
Following the announcement of the confirmed number of teams and the venue for LA28 back in April, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has announced that the T20 competitions for the men's and women's categories at LA28 will run from July 12 to July 29, 2028.
The medal matches will be held on 20 July (women's) and 29 July (men's) respectively. The announcement marks another landmark moment for the sport, which will be making its second-ever Olympic appearance - 128 years after its debut in Paris 1900, when Great Britain claimed gold in a one-off match against France.