Jamaican Olympic gold medallist Usain Bolt (L) runs with Rio de Janeiro's Mayor Eduardo Paes at Manoel Tubino Olympic Village in Rio de Janeiro, Oct 23, 2012. [Photo/Agencies]

 

Jamaican Olympic gold medallist Usain Bolt poses for pictures during his visit to the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, Oct 23, 2012.[Photo/Agencies]

RIO DE JANEIRO - Sprint champion Usain Bolt of Jamaica has revealed plans to diminish his training program in a bid to prolong his career.

Bolt, 26, said on Tuesday his best chance of adding to his haul of six Olympic gold medals was to avoid over-exerting his body between now and the Rio Games in 2016.

"I'm going to try to not train too hard and not force my body more than I need to," Bolt said during a promotional visit to Rio de Janeiro on Tuesday.

"Right now I'm at my physical peak and as you get older it gets harder to maintain that level. But my goal is to reach a peak that is even higher than what I have achieved."

Having previously expressed his desire to compete in the long jump in Rio, Bolt revealed he was still unsure whether the move could be detrimental to his performances in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay.

"The idea was to compete in the long jump but I've spoken to my coach (Glen Mills) about it and he is concerned," Bolt said.

"Jumping causes problems in the knees and hips. We will make a decision soon but I won't do something that is going to negatively affect my performance in the other events."

Bolt admitted his intention to break his own 100m and 200m world records at the Rio Games and reiterated his desire to be classified alongside Michael Jordan and Pele is the greatest athletes of all time.

"I want to be the best in my sport," Bolt said. "If the media and my fans compare me to those great icons then I will be happy. I will continue working as hard as I can so that I can be considered in their company."