Justin Gatlin: Usain Bolt will return to athletics once he’s finished partying

World champion Justin Gatlin believes Usain Bolt will return to sprinting - once the Jamaican superstar stops partying.

Bolt retired from athletics after the World Championships this summer and has been enjoying his time away from the track. But Gatlin, who won gold in London, says the athlete's passion for the sport will see him come back.

Speaking to ThePostGame, Gatlin said: “Now that he has the free time, I’ve already told him, I’m going to give you a year."

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If Bolt does return, he will owe his American rival $100 (£75.86).

“You’re going to go around, party, have a good time and you’re going to come back and you’re going to owe me $100 because I took the bet. He shook on it,” added Gatlin.

“I say that I can see him coming back to sprinting because when you have a passion for something, it’s hard for you to just step away from it and walk away from it.

“Regardless, I mean, he has won every gold medal that he can win at every event that he’s done, right? Three times over, right? So, at the end of the day, you kind of lose your drive. ‘What can I do next? Can I break my own world record again? Can I win another, another, another, another gold medal? What can I do?’ But that passion to get up every morning is still there.

“So once [Bolt] takes some time off and gets away from the sport for a little bit and enjoys himself, finds out who he is, I think that he’ll come back in some form into to track and field. And I think maybe he’ll take another year, see what it is.”

Bolt made an appearance on the F1 podium last weekend, interviewing Lewis Hamilton at the US Grand Prix in Austin, Texas.

However, when asked about his own future, it wasn’t a return to athletics that the athlete discussed but another sport completely - football.

Despite currently suffering from hamstring issues, Bolt said his dream was to pursue a career in professional football and that he will train with German giants Borussia Dortmund once he’s fully fit.

Playing football was a “personal goal”, he added, reports the Daily Mail. Nor does he care what people think – some critics have said he doesn’t have the skill level to compete at the elite level.

“I am not going to lie to myself, if I feel I can’t do it, I'm going to say, ‘Forget this.’ I'm not going to embarrass myself,” he said.

“It’s a dream, it’s another chapter of my life that I really want to do. If you have a dream or something you really want to do, you want try to see where it could go.

“My hamstring is just keeping back right now. In two weeks, I can train again and get back to some shape, then I can really explore that situation.

“[Borussia Dortmund] said the invitation is always open, so it is all about me getting over my injury and into shape. Then I can explore it and do the trials and see what level I am at.

“For me, it’s just to try to see if I really can be one of the best, anything I am doing, I’ll try to do it at my best.”