A former Team GB sprinter who won gold ahead of Usain Bolt has announced his retirement from athletics at the age of 32. Adam Gemili, who represented Britain at the Olympics on three occasions, has decided to hang up his spikes and pursue other opportunities. He leaves the sport behind having enjoyed a long and successful career at the very highest level.

Gemili made his Olympics debut in 2012, competing in the 100 metres and the 4x100m relay. He returned in 2016 and narrowly missed out on a bronze medal, losing third place to French rival Christophe Lemaitre via an agonising photo finish. Gemili took part in his final Olympics in 2021 but it ended in heartbreak when he pulled up with a hamstring injury just moments before the 200-metre heats.

Fast forward five years and the 32-year-old has decided to step away from athletics, having given everything to the sport for the majority of his life.

“For me, it just felt like the right time,” he told Express Sport. “I’ve always wanted to go out on my own terms and this felt like the right opportunity to do that.

“I competed last season and I was debating whether to do one more season: ‘Shall I go again? Shall I try and go to LA?’. And in my head, I sat down and thought: ‘What am I chasing? Like, what am I hoping to achieve?’.

“I’m pretty happy with everything I’ve done. Athletics at the top level is really, really hard and you have to live and breathe it.

“People just see you run for 10 or 20 seconds and think: ‘Oh, it’s easy what you do’. But it’s a 24-hour, seven-days-a-week job. It’s what you do away from the track, your recovery, your lifestyle.

“I’m just ready for new adventures. I think when I got to a stage when I was younger and competing, it was my everything. Good races, bad races, it would consume me.

“And when I started to get to the mindset of, like: ‘It’s okay, it’s alright, it’s not too bad’. That’s when I knew. I didn’t just want to coast in this sport and just be someone that fills the lanes.”

Gemili admitted that it was a decision he wrestled with for some time, adding: “Yeah, to actually pull that trigger and know that I wasn’t going back to winter training.

“To know that I was going to have to let people know, it was a bit scary. It’s all I’ve known my whole adult life.

“I’ve just been able to train and I’ve been so lucky and fortunate to be able to do this and live my dream as a career, really. And now that chapter has come to an end and a new one is starting, it was… I was really sad. I was sad for a while.

“It felt like I was… I don’t want to say playing hooky a little bit, but when I wasn’t going to training every day and I wasn’t getting up and working, it sort of felt like: ‘Oh, I’m having a bit of time off here’.

“And then once that time passes after a month or so and you see everyone on Instagram and social media getting into their training and you’re not doing that, you’re just sort of like: ‘What am I doing in my life? What opportunities are going to come up for me?’.”

Gemili’s career highlight was winning gold with Team GB in the 4x100m relay at the World Athletics Championships in 2017. They prevailed against a star-studded Jamaica team that included Bolt, who retired shortly afterwards.

It was Bolt’s final race at the World Athletics Championships and it ended with him pulling up injured as Great Britain stormed to victory on home soil.

“It was Usain’s last swansong, so everyone was watching,” recalled Gemili. “To come away with a gold medal as the first team in British history to win World Championship gold, and we ran a new British record…

“There were times that night where I was just hugging the boys and I didn’t want to let go. My family were in the stadium and it was a really special moment. To do it in London was the icing on the cake.”

Despite being newly retired, Gemili has no intention of stepping away from the sport entirely. He’s planning to throw himself into coaching and is in the process of setting up his own academy.

“I’ve been doing a bit of coaching and I’ve really enjoyed that side of it,” he said. “I’ve been in top-level sport for a long time and I’ve learned from the very best in all fields.

“To be able to share that and pass it on to the next generation is quite a blessing, so it’s something I’m excited about.

“I’m looking forward to a lot of exciting things. It’s going to be the Adam Gemili Academy, which I’ll be launching very soon, and I’m just excited to see what opportunities come next.”

Even though he’s preparing for another busy career away from the limelight of the athletics track, Gemili is ready to enjoy himself and indulge in his other passions in his spare time.

“I’ve been playing football twice a week with my dad, which I’m really enjoying,” he added. “I haven’t been able to play football with him for a long, long time.

“I’ll be playing padel and trying to get my golf handicap down a little bit. Spend time with family and friends who I’ve been living away from for so many years.

“There’s a lot of catching up that I haven’t really had the chance to do. I’ve always wanted to work in the governance of sport, but it’s a lot harder to make a difference in our organisation than maybe others.

“Maybe one day I could help out and coach the relay squad if there is an opportunity to do that. Right now, I’m just seeing what opportunities come up and saying yes to as much as I can.

“I’ll also try and keep myself in good shape. A lot of my clothes definitely fit a bit snugger than before.

“I’ve noticed it catches up with you quickly when you stop training every day. I don’t want to be one of those athletes that’s retired and all of a sudden just balloons.”

EXPRESS SPORT ON FB! Get all the best sports news and much more on our Facebook page.