Usain Bolt will compete in the 100m at the Anniversary Games later this month, returning to the London's Olympic Stadium.
Bolt, who won three gold medals during the 2012 Olympics, has fond memories of the English capital.
“London is a special place where I love to compete,” he said. “I have great memories of competing in the Olympic Stadium in the summer of 2012 and in the previous Grand Prix meets in London.
“The British fans are always great and I expect there will also be a lot of Jamaican fans in the stadium. It will be amazing to put on another great show for them under the floodlights on the Friday night.”
The reason for the Jamaican’s late inclusion appears to be a tax exemption for foreign athletes competing at the event introduced by George Osborne in the budget earlier this week.
This is why Bolt did not complete in London in 2010 and 2011 or in the Diamond League in Glasgow last year.
Ordinarily, athletes are liable for 50% tax on their appearance fee, plus a proportion of their worldwide earnings.
The Olympic champion has struggled to meet his own exceptionally high standards this year, with niggles and a knee injury impeding his performance.
Bolt’s fastest 100m time of 10.12 seconds this year puts him the 58th in the world rankings, while his 200m best of 20.13 puts him 13th in the standings.
Boris Johnson expressed his excitement at the announcement saying: “The opening night of the Anniversary Games has attracted the strongest field ever assembled for a single night of athletics, providing Londoners with another ‘I was there’ moment’.
“The chance to see a living legend like Bolt is very rare and we are delighted to be able to welcome him to the reopening of the stadium where he so thrilled us all at the 2012 Games.”
Bolt will run on the Friday night of the three-day meeting which runs from 24-26 July.
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