Bolt hangs up boots to concentrate on business

KINGSTON, Jamaica - Usain Bolt is giving up on his dream of forging a career as a professional soccer player following his tryout last year with Australian side Central Coast Mariners.

At an event in Kingston on Monday, the eight-time Olympic sprint champion said he now planned to concentrate on his business career.

"I don't want to say it wasn't dealt with properly, but I think we went about it not the way we should and you learn your lesson. You live and you learn," Bolt told Television Jamaica.

"It was a good experience. I really enjoyed just being in a team and it was much different from track and field and it was fun while it lasted.

"The sports life is over, so I'm now moving into different businesses. I have a lot of things in the pipeline so, as I say, I'm just dabbling in everything and trying to be a businessman now."

After retiring from athletics in 2017, the 100m and 200m world-record holder embarked on a bid to become a soccer pro, saying his ultimate dream was to play for the team he supports, Manchester United.

He trained with German powerhouse Borussia Dortmund and Norwegian squad Stromsgodset before moving Down Under, where he spent two months training with the Mariners.

He managed to score two goals in a friendly game but ultimately the Gosford-based A-League side decided not to offer him a contract.

Bolt was then offered a deal with Maltese champion Valletta but that never materialized, reportedly due to 32-year-old's salary demands.

Bolt was speaking as he handed over a $1 million check to help fund Jamaica's team at the Special Olympics World Summer Games in the United Arab Emirates in March.

Meanwhile, the star of the Beijing, London and Rio de Janeiro Olympics said he was concerned at the failure of a new generation of Jamaican sprinters to emerge following his retirement.

Bolt questioned whether young athletes in Jamaica handed lucrative contracts were being given too much too soon.

"A lot of these athletes I think it's much easier now for them," he said.

"When we were coming up it was a struggle, we didn't get big contracts when we left high school.

"I think a lot of the athletes aren't motivated any more. When they leave high school and they get a big contract they are happy with whatever."

Agence France-Presse