Usain Bolt could be switching sports to join one of the biggest football clubs in Europe — and his dream is to sign with Man United

Usain Bolt sharpens his skills on a football pitch.Reuters

• Usain Bolt confirmed he has a trial period with German football club Borussia Dortmund in March.
• The former Olympic gold medal sprinter trained with a South African team on Monday to sharpen his skills ahead of the trial in Germany.
• Bolt hopes he is good enough to sign for Manchester United — he even asked the club’s former manager Sir Alex Ferguson to put in a good word for him.
• Ferguson said he would see what he could do.

Usain Bolt is on his mark and set to switch careers as the Jamaican has been handed a trial period at one of the biggest football clubs in Europe.

Former Olympic sprinter Bolt, an eight-time gold medal champion, will train at Borussia Dortmund in March.

Bolt, 31, recently told journalists that becoming a footballer “is something that I want to do.” He confirmed: “I have trials with Borussia Dortmund. Then I can decide whether it makes sense to do it, or if it doesn’t make sense.”

Bolt has been sharpening his football skills with South African club Mamelodi Sundowns this week and, according to midfielder Percy Tau, scored a goal during the practice session.

According to the BBC, Bolt said: “When I get back to Jamaica I need more training because I’m unfit.”

On the trial at Dortmund, he told the official Bundesliga website that he is “nervous.”

“I don’t get nervous but this is different, this is football now,” he said. “It’ll take time to adjust but once I play a few times I’ll get used to it. It was the same when I started track and field. I was nervous for a while until I started getting used to the crowd, people and everyone around and it falls into place.

“One of my biggest dreams is to sign for Manchester United. If Dortmund says I’m good enough, I’ll crack on and train hard. I’ve spoken to [former United manager Sir] Alex Ferguson and I told him he needs to put in a good word. He told me if I get fit and ready, he will see what he can do.”