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When Jamaican sprinter Warren Weir told Usain Bolt about his career change, the Olympic icon cut a bemused figure.

 

After all, Weir finished behind only Bolt and fellow Jamaican great Yohan Blake in the 200m event at the 2012 London Olympics to secure a bronze medal.

 

 

(LtoR) Silver medallist Jamaica’s Yohan Blake, gold medallist Jamaica’s Usain Bolt and bronze medallist Jamaica’s Warren Weir pose on the podium after the men’s 200m final at the athletics event during the London 2012 Olympic Games on August 9, 2012 in London.

Bolt (centre) overcame Weir (right) in the 200m final at the London Olympics

It meant Weir helped create Jamaican athletic history, as the 200m race was the first time the Caribbean nation enjoyed a podium clean sweep in a men’s event.

 

The 35-year-old even clocked a personal best time of 19.84 seconds as he claimed the bronze.

 

However, when Weir injured his hamstring at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Australia, he recognised his time on the track was nearing its end.

 

 

But his sporting career was not.

 

“It’s not about quitting. It’s about knowing when to move on.”

 

With Weir knowing the curtains on his athletic career were about to be drawn, he decided he would try his hand at rugby sevens.

 

Weir won medals at the Olympics, the World Championships and Commonwealth Games

Weir won medals at the Olympics, the World Championships and Commonwealth GamesCredit: Getty

Rugby sevens is far less physical than the 15-a-side format of the game and players blessed with speed, like Weir, can exploit the multiple gaps across the field.

 

In fact, it was the Jamaican rugby sevens team that approached Weir, rather than the other way around.

 

 

But the Olympic medallist was all too keen to try his hand at the sport.

 

Speaking to the Olympics Channel, Weir revealed how his former rival Bolt reacted to his career change.

 

Safe to say, the eight-time Olympic gold medallist was rather surprised.

 

“Bolt’s a good friend of mine and we see each other at the track a lot,” Weir said.

 

 

Weir had never played rugby sevens until he was approached by Jamaica’s team

Weir had never played rugby sevens until he was approached by Jamaica’s teamCredit: @warren_weir on Instagram

“It’s just chatting and jokes. When I told him that I was going to rugby he was like, ‘Yo, bro are you joking? You’re so slim!’”

 

It was just three months later when Weir made his rugby sevens debut as he represented Jamaica at the 2018 Central American and Caribbean Games.

 

The Jamaican team, also known as the ‘Crocs’, finished third after beating Trinidad and Tobago 26-5 in the bronze medal match.

 

 

Although Weir was pleased to pick up a medal in his new sport, his main ambition was to help the Crocs qualify for the rugby sevens event at the Tokyo Olympics.

 

However, his dream failed to materialise, as Jamaica finished last in their pool at the final qualification tournament.

 

They lost all three of their matches against France, Hong Kong and Chile, scoring just ten points and conceding 102.

 

 

 

The pair will now focus on their outdoor campaigns, with the ultimate aim being September’s World Championships in Tokyo

Laviai Nielsen and Jemma Reekie have announced that they have ended their indoor seasons.

 

The pair, who both represented Great Britain on the track at last year’s Olympics in Paris, will now prepare for their outdoor campaigns, with the season’s pinnacle being the Tokyo World Championships in September.

 

“Unfortunately, I’ve made the decision to end my indoor season here so no British Champs for me this weekend,” Nielsen said.

 

“After a challenging winter with a few setbacks, I know I’m not in the shape I need to be to compete at my best. It’s never easy to step away, but this is the right call to focus on getting stronger for the outdoor season.”

 

 

GB women’s 4x400m squad in Paris

 

The 28-year-old competed in three indoor 400m races in February, clocking a season’s best of 51.88 at the Meeting Metz Moselle Athlelor in France.

 

Nielsen’s personal best in the indoor 400m is the 50.89 that placed her fourth at last year’s World Indoor Championships in Glasgow.

 

The Brit also finished 12th overall in the Paris Olympic 400m semi-finals and secured two bronzes in the women’s and mixed 4x400m relays at the Stade de France.

 

 

 

Reekie has also made the decision to cut short her indoor season, with the main focus being outdoors.

 

“I’ve decided the best way for myself to get ready for this outdoor season is to prioritise me and get back to work,” she said.

 

The 26-year-old competed in two indoor 800m races in February, with her season’s best being the 1:59.72 she ran at the Meeting Metz Moselle Athlelor in France.

 

Although Reekie didn’t make the Olympic 800m final, she secured a silver medal over the distance on home soil at last year’s World Indoor Championships in Glasgow.

 

Reekie also improved her outright 800m best to 1:55.61 at the London Diamond League, going second on the UK all-time list behind only Keely Hodgkinson.

 

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Usain Bolt was once stripped of an Olympic gold medal for a heartbreaking reason nearly a decade after winning it.

 

Bolt, 38, is an eight-time Olympic gold medallist but once boasted nine triumphs.

 

During his hugely successful sprinting career, he smashed world records in the 100m, 200m and 4 x 100m relay and is still the only athlete to win 100m and 200m golds in three consecutive Olympics – in 2008, 2012 and 2016.

 

The Jamaican completed the remarkable ‘triple triple’ of golds at the Rio de Janeiro games in Brazil only for the achievement to be taken from him after his teammate from the Beijing games in 2008 tested positive for a banned substance.

 

 

According to reports by BBC Sport, Carter, 39, was tested on the evening of the 4 x 100m final in Beijing, China.

 

No “adverse analytical finding” was found at the time.

 

However, an anomaly was discovered in Carter’s sample following the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) decision to retest 454 samples from the games using updated scientific methods.

 

Carter and the Jamaican team were then informed of the adverse finding in May 2016.

 

 

Reuters reported that his ‘B’ sample also came back positive for a banned substance.

 

The decision was appealed by Carter in February 2017 before a hearing was held in Switzerland in November 2017. The ban was upheld.

 

The 2008 Jamaican Olympic 4 x 100m team

The substance named Methylhexanamine had been on the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) prohibited list since 2004 but was reclassified in 2011 to a “specified substance”.

 

 

 

“It’s heartbreaking [the positive test] because over the years you’ve worked hard to accumulate gold medals and work hard to be a champion … but it’s just one of those things,” Bolt said when pressed on the situation in 2016.

 

“Things happen in life, so when it’s confirmed or whatever, if I need to give back my gold medal, I’d have to give it back; it’s not a problem for me.”

 

In another interview [quotes via talkSPORT] he added: “I am disappointed based on losing a medal.

 

“But it won’t take away from what I have done throughout my career, because I have won my individual events and that’s the key thing.”

 

 

 

He explained: “What can you do? I’ve done all I wanted in the sport, I have really impacted the sport, I’ve really accomplished a lot, so for me, I can’t complain.”

 

And despite sporting one less gold medal, there’s no doubting Bolt’s legacy in the sport and his long-standing world records speak for themselves.