At the peak of his athletic career, Usain Bolt was a man in demand when it came to sponsorships.

After all, who wouldn’t want a piece of the fastest man on the planet?

But there’s only one deal that would be his most recognisable.

That would be his contract with sportswear giant Puma, who he wore during his most iconic moments on the track.

Bolt and Puma’s partnership began in 2002, long before he set any of his world records.

However, Bolt was at risk of being dropped by Puma in 2004 as Jochen Zeitz, who was CEO of the brand at the time, explained in an interview with NBC he was concerned with the Jamaican’s work ethic.

“We said, ‘Well, he’s a young guy, but he doesn’t really want to train as hard as he should,’” Zeitz said.

“He has all the potential but he does get injured. If he doesn’t practice, he’s never going to be great.”

Puma ultimately elected to persist with Bolt and it was a decision that paid off handsomely, as he went on to win eight Olympic gold medals and set the world record in the 100metre and 200metre events.

Thanks to Bolt’s exploits on the track, he inked a new deal with Puma in 2013 that was estimated to net him an eye-watering $10million (£7.7m) per year.

The figure reportedly dropped to $4m (£3m) once he retired to act as an ambassador for the brand.

Based on those numbers, Bolt will have earned around $78m (£60m) given he retired in 2017.

Bolt’s best moments on the track came with him wearing Puma gearHowever, Bolt’s staggering contract may never have happened had it not been for him meeting with one of Puma’s biggest rivals.

Speaking on the Ready Set Go podcast with Justin Gatlin and Rodney Green, Bolt addressed the rumours he was set to sign with Nike during his peak years.

Although the Jamaican denied he came close to signing on the dotted line with the American brand, they still had a big role to play in securing his eight-figure pay day.

“We had a meeting with Nike,” Bolt said.

“That’s the only time we had a meeting with Nike. Puma matched the contract. They got me paid. Nike got me paid, bro.

“Zeitz was the Puma CEO at the time. He flew us to Kenya that year. We sat and discussed.

The Jamaican explained how a meeting with Nike helped land him a $10m contractCredit: Ready Set Go podcast“When he told me the figure, I had to play it cool, bro. They got me paid, I must say.

“It was the second contract. We’re having no conversations, we are getting paid.”

Bolt added his $10m deal came ‘before I got hot’, underlining his business prowess.

Well, it’s either that or Puma had tremendous foresight to know what Bolt would go on to produce out on the track.