Great Britain Olympic hero Greg Rutherford makes bobsleigh team ahead of Winter Games

Former Olympic long jump champion Greg Rutherford has qualified for a Team GB bobsleigh squad as he eyes a place at the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing.

Rutherford dramatically won long jump gold as one of three British track athletes to claim the Olympic title on ‘Super Saturday’ at London 2012, and he followed such a performance with a bronze medal at Rio 2016.

If he could get onto the podium next year, Rutherford would be the first British athlete to win medals at both the summer and winter Olympic Games. Only six athletes have ever achieved such a feat in Olympic history.

The 34-year-old took part in a number of endurance tests at the British bobsleigh and skeleton headquarters in Bath to earn his place in the team, a five-man squad that will now come together to try and qualify for the Winter Olympics.

Greg Rutherford won gold at the London Olympics in 2012 on the same day as Mo Farah and Jessica Ennis-Hill (PA)

Rutherford took to social media to announce the news.

“HUGE NEWS!” The 2015 world long jump champion wrote on Instagram.

“A massive milestone has been hit in my bobsleigh journey. A few weeks ago we had our trials and I managed to qualify for the British team to compete this winter!

“The team now has to qualify for the Olympic Games by placing well on the World Cup circuit (as does every team).

“This has been a huge undertaking, going from a very retired former athlete, to retraining in a new sport and qualifying for the team. A massive thank you to everyone who's helped thus far.

“We start competing in a couple of months' time with the medal dream very much alive.

“The entire journey is being documented by Discovery/Eurosport so everyone will get to see exactly what it takes and I can't wait to share more on here as it progresses.”

Do you think Greg Rutherford will qualify for the 2022 Winter Olympics? Let us know in the comments section.

Greg Rutherford is now hoping to repeat his London 2012 success with Team GB at the Winter Games (Getty Images)

After retiring from long jump in 2018 due to nagging injury troubles, Rutherford announced he would take up bobsleigh earlier this year.

The Milton Keynes-born star proved himself at the tests and qualified for the team despite still never actually sitting in a bobsleigh before, but coaches believe he is physically capable.

Qualifying for the Olympics takes place over seven events that come to an end January, with the Winter Games taking place in February 2022.