Olympic gold medal-winning sprinter Mark Lewis-Francis has joined the Great Britain bobsleigh team in a bid to compete at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro and the 2018 Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang.

Lewis-Francis, who won gold in the 4x100m relay in 2004, wants to revive his Olympic career at both Games after missing out on the Beijing and London Olympics in 2008 and 2012 through injury. 

The 33-year-old believes he can be a boost for a four-man bobsleigh team that finished fifth at the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi and feels training for that event can help improve his sprinting.

"I can be a great track athlete and a great bobsleigher," he said.

"My problem has always been my start and hopefully bobsleigh can help me improve that because I'd love to make the Rio 2016 team.

"Some of my greatest moments have come in team events, like the 4x100m relay [in Athens], so bobsleigh plays to my strengths.

"I watched the last Winter Olympics on the TV and was very intrigued, but I've found it's not as easy as it looks and I have so much respect for the guys here.

"They already have a good team and I'm a big lad, I'm strong, I still have a little bit of fast-twitch fibre left too so perhaps with a bit of MLF speed in there we can finish a bit better than fifth."