Usain Bolt extends contract with Puma for 2012 Olympics

The new contract is believed to be worth in excess of US$14.5 million over its duration.

Puma claims the contract is "by far the largest ever given to a track and field athlete, positioning Bolt as a top earner in the world of sport".

The 24-year-old Jamaican sprinter will be central to the brand's global marketing and its Olympic campaign, expected to be launched in early 2011.

Puma signed Bolt when he was 16 in 2003, and has reaped the benefit of his performances and popularity, particularly over the past two years, when he won three gold medals at the Beijing Olympics and took the 100m world record at the World Championships in Berlin in 2009.

This year, it launched the Bolt Collection, a range of clothing, footwear and accessories that the sprinter helped develop.

Jochen Zeitz, chairman and CEO of the German company, said, "Usain has been a tremendous force for the Puma brand. He embodies the joy, playfulness and irreverence that are the cornerstone of our brand."

This article was first published on marketingmagazine.co.uk.