Usain Bolt may switch to other events after 2012 Games

Reuters

STAR POWER: Usain Bolt's decision to skip the Games has come back to haunt this event.

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Jamaican sprint star Usain Bolt may switch to other disciplines such as the long jump after the 2012 London Olympics.

Bolt said early today (NZ time) that he fears his fans will get bored with him if he wins the 100 and 200 metres at the 2012 Games, and he is eager to try new events.

"I'm not going to be one of those athletes who go on to do track and field until they're 36," Bolt said.

"If I win (in London), then I probably have to try something else because people are probably tired of seeing me."

"I definitely want to try long jump before I retire,'" said Bolt, the reigning Olympic and world champion and world record-holder in the 100 and 200.

After a six-week injury layoff, Bolt returns to action tonight (NZ time) in the Athletissima meet, part of the IAAF's elite Diamond League series.

He will run the 100 instead of the 200 to avoid aggravating the Achilles' tendon problem that has kept him out of competition since he won the 300m at the Golden Spike meeting in Ostrava, Czech Republic, on May 27.

"The doctor said to me I should actually try to avoid running the curves," Bolt said.

Bolt will face fellow Jamaican Yohan Blake and Antiguan sprinter Brendan Christian, but not his strongest rivals, Asafa Powell and Tyson Gay.

Bolt said he was still "in decent shape" despite the injury layoff, but cautioned against expecting another record-breaking result.

"My aim is to finish the race injury-free," he said.

Bolt said he expects to race Powell in Paris next week, but does not know when he will next get a chance to run against Gay, who returned from a hamstring injury in Eugene, Oregon, on Saturday.

- AP