Jamaica’s Elaine Thompson-Herah leads 100 clean sweeps in record-setting time
Elaine Thompson-Herah of Jamaica had just become the second-fastest woman in history. But she needed a few seconds Saturday night at the Tokyo Games when asked what it was like to break the Olympic record in the women’s 100-meter race.
“Ahhh,” Thompson-Herah began, “my throat hurts.”That was the cost of shouting for joy in triumph. Thompson-Herah shouted several times after crossing the finish line in 10.61 seconds to win her second consecutive Olympic gold medal in the marquee event.
Thompson-Herah broke the Olympic record of 10.62 seconds that Florence Griffith Joyner set at the Seoul Games in 1988. Griffith Joyner’s world-record time of 10.49 still stands, but with six of the eight finalists on Saturday finishing in under 11 seconds, it is perhaps within reach, especially for Thompson-Herah.
“Anything is possible,” she said after leading a Jamaican sweep. Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce won the silver medal, and Shericka Jackson bronze as Jamaicans won every medal in the event for the first time since the 2008 Beijing Games.“We’re amazing,” Thompson-Herah said.
The only American in the final, Teahan Daniels, said that while she would love to see an American flag during the medal ceremony, the Jamaicans deserved respect for their achievement.“It’s cool seeing them,” Daniels said, “They’ve worked so hard. … I can’t be mad at the talent and the work they put in.”
Thompson-Herah, also seeking a second consecutive gold medal in the 200 meters, overcame an Achilles injury that slowed her during Jamaica’s Olympic trials in June. She finished third in both events. Two months ago, a month-and-a-half, I didn’t think I would be here,” she said.
Thompson-Herah showed no weakness Friday while winning a qualifying heat. She also appeared to breeze in a semifinal Saturday afternoon.
Her biggest competition in the final figured to be Fraser-Pryce, a four-time Olympian seeking her third 100-meters gold medal. Marie-Josse Ta Lou of Ivory Coast also was regarded as a top contender. Behind this 10.6, there was a lot of nerves,” she said, “As in ‘You can do this. You’ve been here before. Just execute.’”
Fraser-Pryce said she had a problematic third step after the start and never recovered.“I don’t ever find excuses as an athlete,” she said. “You have to show up and perform regardless. One marquee sprinter was absent Saturday. American Sha’Carri Richardson, winner of the 100 meters at the U.S. Olympic trials, was suspended on June 30 after testing positive for marijuana.
Thompson-Herah was asked how she thought Richardson would stack up against her.“No comment,” she said.
If Thompson-Herah qualifies for the Paris Games in 2024, she will have the opportunity to match countryman Usain Bolt, the winner of three consecutive Olympic gold medals in the men’s 100, before he retired.
Thompson-Herah indicated that she has plenty of time for more success.“I’m not 30, I’m not 40,” she said. “I’m still working.”
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