Usain Bolt confirms he's 'ready' to make Olympic Games comeback with another sport
Athletics legend Usain Bolt would be ready to represent Jamaica again at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
Usain Bolt has revealed he is ready to compete at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games - but not in athletics. The Jamaican sprinter dominated the 100m and 200m events across three Olympics from 2008 to 2016, securing eight gold medals and setting world records in the 200m (19.19 seconds), 100m (9.58 seconds) and 4x100m (36.84 seconds) races.
Bolt retired after the 2017 World Championships in London, where he finished third in the 100m, as one of the greatest Olympians ever. Yet, despite now being 39, Bolt has suggested he could compete in a completely different sport at the next Olympics in Los Angeles. The track and field legend is open to representing Jamaica in cricket, a sport beloved in his home country, when it returns to the Olympic programme in 2028 after a 38-year absence.
In an interview with Esquire in January, Bolt said: "I am happily retired from professional sport. I haven't played cricket in a long time. But if they call me, I'll be ready," before laughing.
Bolt has often expressed a love for cricket since his childhood. He played the sport at school and excelled as a fast bowler. Had it not been for his school coach noticing his extraordinary speed and steering him towards athletics, Bolt might have even represented the West Indies in cricket.
Of course, this wouldn't mark Bolt's first foray into a different professional sport. Following his retirement from athletics in 2018, the lifelong Manchester United supporter made his ambitions to play professional football clear.
Bolt rejected a two-year contract from Maltese side Valletta and instead joined Australia's Central Coast Mariners on an eight-week trial, even managing to score twice in a friendly fixture.
He left the A-League club in November 2018 despite receiving a contract offer, with talks reportedly breaking down over wages. The following January, Bolt announced he would no longer pursue a football career, saying his "sports life is over".
Since being carried off on a stretcher with a ruptured Achilles tendon during the Soccer Aid charity match at Stamford Bridge in 2024, the veteran has admitted he no longer runs.
He faces a considerable challenge in returning to fitness if he harbours any genuine hopes of returning to the Olympics as a cricketer.
Speaking to The Guardian in September 2025, he said: "I mostly do gym workouts. I'm not a fan, but I think now that I've been out for a while I have to actually start running.
"Because when I walk up stairs I get out of breath. I think when I start working on it fully again, I will probably have to do some laps just to get my breathing right."
