History shows us that stars switching sports is often a long shot

I called it. Just three weeks ago, in the pages of this venerable organ, I suggested that the loss to Welsh football on the occasion of Gareth Bale's retirement would be a gain for the nation's golfing hopes. Well, last week, while many of us here in China were celebrating Spring Festival, Bale reported from Los Angeles, via his Instagram account, that he would be competing in the upcoming Pebble Beach Pro-Am golf tournament, an announcement reposted by the PGA shortly afterward.

So, it seems we've gone from "Wales, golf, Madrid. In that order "to "Golf. And that's all".

Admittedly, it was hardly a massive leap that Bale would explore a career involving his second sporting passion, and as a soccer retiree, there may still be a role for him to play in the Wales national team coaching setup in the future. However, for now, Gareth's way is the fairway — as it is now for a lot of people back home, who will be religiously tuning into the golf in February.

It did get me thinking, though. How many other sports stars, who led their field, have dramatically changed tack to try their hand at a different sport to the one with which they became synonymous? Moreover, how many succeeded?

I am, for the sake of argument, discounting the likes of New Zealander, Jeff Wilson, who excelled at rugby and cricket at the highest level, as they are seasonal sports and there have been many similar examples, nor am I counting rugby players or fighters who have enjoyed careers in differing codes.

I'm talking more about the likes of Usain Bolt, who, synonymous with Jamaican sprinting, always wanted to play soccer. Upon retiring, he did just that. In 2018, he started by training with Norwegian side, Stromsgodset, playing in a friendly match for the U19 side with the shirt number 9.58, alluding to his world 100m record. He wore the same number when he turned out as skipper of a World XI for a Soccer Aid charity match at Old Trafford a few months later.

Following that, in August the same year, he began training with the Australian A-League side, Central Coast Mariners. He made two friendly appearances for the club, before the Mariners eventually came to the table with a contract, which he signed in October 2018.

However, his performances came in for criticism. Perhaps, most cuttingly, from other players. Perth Glory forward Andy Keogh noted that Bolt had a first touch "like a trampoline" and his presence was considered by some as a "bit of a kick in the teeth" to the league's professional players. Eight weeks later, in January 2019, Bolt hung up his boots, stating that his career in sport was over.

Bolt wasn't the first, nor, it seems, the last.

In 1993, Michael Jordan stunned the world of basketball by quitting the court and taking up baseball, signing a Minor League contract with the Chicago White Sox. He reported for spring training in February '94, played one Major League game for the White Sox in an exhibition game against crosstown rival, the Chicago Cubs, before turning out for the club's Minor League affiliates, the Birmingham Barons and Scottsdale Scorpions, respectively. In March '95, Jordan quit baseball, apparently worried he might become a "replacement player" during the MLB players' strike that year, returning to the court and re-signing for the Chicago Bulls.

More recently, after quitting the New York Jets, Heisman Trophy-winning NFL quarterback Tim Tebow enjoyed a four-season stint as a Minor League baseball professional in the New York Mets system, and while he never made an impact in "The Show", he carved out a short, journeyman's career in Triple-A baseball before retiring in 2021, so, arguably, the first "success" story in this list.

Perhaps the most extreme example I can think of, though, is that of England cricketer, Andrew "Freddie "Flintoff. The affable, but beefy fast bowler, following his retirement from what most would consider a somewhat sedate sport, fancied himself a boxer, a considerably more violent pastime. He gave it a good crack, working hard to get himself fit for his first, and what would prove to be his only, competitive bout.

His boxing career lasted four rounds against Richard Dawson, a novice fighter from the United States, and despite hitting the canvas in the second of those, Flintoff muscled his way to a points victory. Reportedly, though, it was an atrocious fight, and Flintoff decided that pugilism was not for him, much to the relief of his coach, legendary Irish featherweight world champion, Barry McGuigan, who admitted that it had been such a tough job to get the cricketer into fighting shape, he didn't think it would be feasible in the long-term. That said, he went out with a victory, so I'd call it a win, in technical terms, at least.

Perhaps closer to home for Bale is Italian soccer legend, Paolo Maldini. With seven Serie A titles and 126 international caps under his belt, after hanging up his boots in 2009, the AC Milan defender turned his attention to Tennis.

Back in 2017, the Aspira Tennis Cup was hosted by the Harbour Club Milano and members were offered a chance to qualify via a special tournament. Maldini and his coach, former world 975 Stefano Landonio, entered and won.

Sadly, though, their ATP partnership lasted just 41 on-court minutes, getting beaten in two straight sets by Poland's Tomasz Bednarek and David Pel of the Netherlands. Maldini, pragmatic, said that he had enjoyed the "unique and unrepeatable" moment, noting that, at the age of 49, he never expected to get such an experience.

Ending on a positive note, it seems that former Manchester United shot stopper Fabien Barthez found the road to rare post-soccer sporting success an easy one. Soccer stars and fast cars go hand-in-hand so, perhaps, it's no surprise that one of them eventually took up motor racing. After stepping out from between the sticks at Old Trafford, Barthez won the 2013 French GT Championship. In 2014, he competed at Le Mans for the first time, crossing the line 9th in his category and a very creditable 29th place overall. He has competed in the grueling 24-hour endurance race a further three times since, and, last year, posted five podium finishes in the French FFSA GT Championship series.

Bale will obviously be hoping to be more of a Barthez than a Maldini, as he attempts to hack out a post-soccer career on the links, if that is indeed his long-term plan.

If it is, then, with a healthy dollop of luck, my other suggestion that, one day, he could end up wearing the famed Green Jacket might just make it a predictive "double Eagle "on my part.