KINGSTON, Jamaica, Saturday August 27, 2016 – Digicel Caribbean Ltd has announced a lifetime partnership with Olympic champion Usain Bolt, naming him its Chief Speed Officer (CSO).

A lifetime deal is an honour only a few of the absolute greatest athletes in the world have ever achieved, and this is the first one Digicel has ever made.

Today we’re excited to announce that #LivingLegend @usainbolt has been appointed lifetime Digicel Brand Ambassador. pic.twitter.com/CTtnfsaUV7

— Digicel Jamaica (@DIGICELJamaica) August 25, 2016

Digicel has sponsored the Jamaican track star since 2004 when he was fresh out of high school. The latest deal comes on the heels of Bolt creating history at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio when he achieved the ‘triple triple’ – three gold medals in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m at three consecutive Olympic Games.

In his role as Digicel CSO, Bolt will get up close and personal with Digicel customers, from both a commercial and community point of view and will continue to inspire, motivate and captivate customers and fans across the globe for many years to come, the telecommunications company said in a statement on Thursday.

“The innovative new partnership will see Usain bringing his unique understanding of speed to customers via Digicel products, networks and marketing and partnership initiatives – and to aspiring youth athletes via speed camps, motivational and mentorship sessions. Digicel will also support Usain in his passion for giving back by bringing technology solutions to young people that will help them develop and grow,” it added.

Peter Lloyd, Director of Marketing for Digicel Group said the company was honoured to be turning its 12-year relationship with Bolt into a lifelong relationship.

“Our relationship with Usain transcends sport – he is a unique human being who inspires millions of people across the world. We take pride in having been the first to offer superfast LTE and fibre to the home services in our markets across the globe and to be delivering a truly cutting edge communications and entertainment experience to our customers. As our Chief Speed Officer, we expect Usain to challenge us constantly to deliver awesome experiences to our customers be it from a product, service or community perspective,” he said.

In accepting the new role and his lifetime contract, Bolt said he was “humbled” by the gesture.

“It’s been an amazing journey with Digicel – they have been there for me since I was 17 years old and now we will be together forever. As Digicel CSO, I am opening a new chapter and will be making it my mission to ensure that speed stays at the top of the agenda,” he said.

Digicel announced that it will also be rewarding one customer in each country in which it operates with a free lifetime postpaid contract. Those customers will be selected via a social media competition to be run across the company’s markets worldwide.