She choose her 32nd birthday to announce her plans, eight months after giving birth to a daughter and 14 months after her retirement.

Hellebaut follows in the footsteps of Belgian tennis players Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin who have both recently made successful comebacks.

More than two years after announcing her retirement, Clijsters won the US Open last year, the first mother to win a major since Evonne Goolagong triumphed at Wimbledon in 1980.

She beat Henin in the final, returning herself after a 20 month break.

Henin also reached the final of the Australian Open in Melbourne last month, losing to Serena Williams.

Hellebaut retired in December 2008, capping a year in which she won gold at the Beijing Olympics.

When she quit she was also the reigning world indoor pentathlon winner and European indoor and outdoor high jump champion.

She said: "I am ambitious.

"It would be silly to make the rounds of small events.

"The goal is the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

"I hope to regain my form by next year."



Since retiring, Hellebaut has been working for a sports marketing organisation.

She began training again last September.

Hellebaut said the successful comebacks of Clijsters and Henin were partly behind the reason for her return.

She said: "I pondered for a few days with a question I did not dare to say out loud: 'What you can do in tennis can you also do in athletics?'.

"I must confess that when I saw Kim and Justine return so successfully, I wondered if I too could succeed.

"It is a unique challenge.

"I would like to test myself.

"Can I still jump two metres?"

"I wanted to know how Kim handled it all with [daughter] Jada.

"I already knew her situation well, but it's always nice to get some tips."