Usain Bolt to train with Central Coast Mariners

The world’s fastest man will train with the Central Coast Mariners in a bid to earn a professional contract.

Usain Bolt says it’s his dream to play professional football. Picture: Getty

Eight-time Olympic gold Medallist Usain Bolt is expected to land in Australia later this month after the Central Coast Mariners confirmed the world’s fastest man will train with them in a bid to earn a professional contract.

The Australian understands the Jamaican will arrive on August 18 before meeting his new teammates then getting down to his first official training session in Gosford in front of what is expected to be a massive worldwide media contingent as well as thousands of fans.

While Bolt will train with the club, there is no guarantee of him being involved in an actual trial.

The Mariners confirmed in a statement that the agreement between the club and Bolt “does not guarantee a professional playing contract but does provide him with an opportunity to achieve his burning desire to play football professionally.”

Bolt told the club he is thrilled to be continuing his journey to become a professional footballer.

“I am very excited about coming to Australia and would like to thank the owner and management of the Central Coast Mariners for giving me this opportunity,” Bolt said in a statement. “It has been my dream to play professional football and I know that it will involve a lot of hard work and training to get to the level required to play and make an impact in the A-League.

“When I spoke to the head coach Mike Mulvey on the phone he outlined the ambitions of the club and his plans for the upcoming season. I hope I can make a positive contribution to the club and look forward to meeting the other players, staff and fans in the coming weeks.

“I always say that ‘anything is possible, don’t think limits and I look forward to the challenge.”

The man who put the deal together, agent Tony Rallis said Bolt will be given every chance to prove himself.

“As I always said, this is not a gimmick,” Rallis, speaking from Athens, told The Australian last night. “He is determined to make a fist of this but doesn’t want any favours.

“Whether it takes three weeks, two months, four months … he will be given as long as possible.

“If, at any time during the process he doesn’t feel or there is a mutual understanding it is not work out then that will be respected.”

Rallis, who looks after the interests of Socceroos Trent Sainsbury, Josh Risdon, Dimi Petratos and Andrew Nabbout, said a number of factors had to be resolved before confirmation of Bolt’s arrival.

“We had to work on the commercial factors that are Bolt Inc. There were a lot of commercial issues to contend,” he said. “The other thing we had to work on was a plan that would be fair to him, our league and the Mariners. He is coming to train and there will be certain benchmarks. We have eliminated the process of a trial.”

Bolt, who is expected to live in Terrigal during his stay, has had training sessions with a number of clubs over the past 18 months — Borussia Dortmund (Germany), Mamelodi Sundowns FC (South Africa) and Strømsgodset (Norway).

Rallis confirmed that there was still strong interest from the MLS for Bolt.

Mariners CEO Shaun Mielekamp said the club welcomed “the immense opportunity that presents itself by having one of the greatest athletes of all time on the Central Coast”.

“Our goal is to be the most innovative, entertaining and community minded sports brand in Australia, this is our competitive edge,” Mielekamp said. “Having Usain Bolt come to the club to train and hopefully develop into a professional football player is perfectly aligned to this part of the club’s philosophy.

“It is important that we don’t get too caught up in the hype of possibilities, but the reality is that he has placed his faith in the Central Coast Mariners to accelerate his football journey. While we all know this must be tempered with the reality that there is a job to do and hard work ahead, we are committed to building a team that will win matches and instil belief. Hopefully Usain can help us on this mission.”