French sprinter Christophe Lemaitre retires at age 34

The 34-year-old, who has not competed at the international level since 2018, said that the onset of another injury, which had scotched any remaining hopes of competing at the Olympics in Paris, had prompted the decision.

Christophe Lemaitre of France suffers an injury during the men’s 100-metre race at the IAAF Diamond League Athletics Meet. | Photo Credit: AP

Christophe Lemaitre, a four-time European champion and Olympic and world bronze medallist in the 200m, announced his retirement from athletics on Thursday.

The 34-year-old, who has not competed at the international level since 2018, said that the onset of another injury, which had scotched any remaining hopes of competing at the Olympics in Paris, had prompted the decision.

“The reasons are pretty simple,” he said.

“It’s just that I did everything this year to take part in the Paris Games, except that I didn’t succeed, unfortunately. There was yet another calf injury that appeared and that scuppered all my chances of hoping to qualify,” he added.

In 2010, aged just 20, he took the European championships in Barcelona by storm, winning the 100m, 200m and helping France to the 4x100m relay.

Six years later in Rio he took bronze in the Olympic 200m behind Usain Bolt and Andre de Grasse.

In between, he won 200-metre bronze medal at the 2011 World Championships and five European medals in 2012, plus two more in 2014.