Usain Bolt has named the record-breaking Wayde van Niekerk as one of three sprinters he’d love to have raced against.

The Jamaican legend has been absent from the track since 2017 after a stunning career that delivered eight Olympic gold medals.

Bolt is one of the most iconic sprinters in historyCredit: Getty

He named three other track stars he’d have been keen to raceCredit: PUMA YouTube

Bolt is famous for his success in the 100m and is still the world record holder with 9.58 seconds during the 2009 World Championships.

However, 200m and 4x100m relay victories were also claimed, with many regarding him as the greatest sprinter in history.

Justin Gatlin, Tyson Gay and Yohan Blake are just three of the names that rivalled Bolt, who revealed a talented trio he wished to race.

On the PUMA Go Wild Podcast, Colin Jackson asked him: “If you could race against anyone from the past, or present, who would it be?”

“It would definitely be Michael Johnson, and Don Quarrie,” Bolt said.

“And I’m very sad that I didn’t get to compete against van Niekerk, we wanted to do a 200m and I was not fit enough.

“That’s one thing, I was like, ‘You know what? I wish I was fit enough to compete against him.’

“He’s the world record holder and I was like, ‘You know what? To run a 200m with him, who would be the best?’

“It would have been great to compete with him.”

Van Niekerk won 400m gold for South Africa at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro with a world record time of 43.03 seconds.

Van Niekerk has held the 200m world record for nearly a decadeCredit: AFP

American legend Johnson won four Olympic gold medalsCredit: Getty

Quarrie is one of Bolt’s idols on the trackCredit: Getty

He finished 0.15 seconds quicker than Johnson, who held the record for just under 17 years after his win at the 1999 World Championships.

Gold medals in 2015 and 2017 World Championships were also won by Van Niekerk, with both coming in the 400m.

The 32-year-old is the first sprinter in history to hit sub-10, sub-20 and sub-44 times in the 100m, 200m and 400m respectively.

While Van Niekerk and Johnson are legends in their own right, Bolt’s compatriot Quarrie won 200m gold at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal.

He was also a three-time winner at the 1970 Commonwealth Games in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay.

For many, though, Bolt remains top of the pecking order as one of the greatest Olympians and sportsmen of all-time.

Usain Bolt makes surprise offer to iShowSpeed during livestream