OLYMPIC and World Championships 400-metre silver medallist Shericka Williams has set her sights on becoming the first Jamaican woman to break the 49-second barrier this season.

“My main aim for the season is try and break 49 seconds,” Williams told the Observer on Saturday after clocking an impressive 23.25secs to win the Olympic Development 200m in her season opening race at the UWI Gatorade Invitational on Saturday.

Only nine women have ran below 49 seconds in the history of the event.

They are world record holder Marita Koch of Germany with 47.60secs, Czech Jarmila Kratochvílová (47.99), Marie-José Pérec of France (48.25), Olga Vladykina-Bryzgina of Ukraine (48.27), Czech Tatána Kocembová (48.59), Australia’s Cathy Freeman (48.63), the American pair of Sanya Richards (48.70) and Valerie Brisco-Hooks (48.83) as well as Mexico’s Ana Guevara (48.89).

Williams, who became the second fastest Jamaica of all-time while clocking 49.32secs for silver at last summer’s 12th IAAF World Championships in Berlin, is just 0.02 off the national record of 49.30 set by World and Olympic silver medallist Lorraine Fenton in 2002.

In the meantime, the MVP athlete was delighted with her season opening time of 23.25secs in the 200m.

“I think that’s great because I never expected to run fast, so it’s pretty good and I’m feeling great right now,” the quarter-miler commented.

“I knew I executed well because Schillonie (Calvert) was on my inside and she’s a very good 100-metre runner and I knew she would be running the first half of the race fast. I just tried to keep with her and then, take from there down the straight because I know I’m much stronger than her going 200 metres,” the petite athlete reasoned. Calvert, who trains at the Racers Track Club, placed second in 23.97secs.

“I’m felling pretty good because last year at the Grace Jackson meet, I think I ran 23.7, then went on to Australia and did 22.9 and now that I’ve done 23.2, I think I’m on par to where I was last season,” Williams added.

The 24-year-old athlete is still unsure whether she will be participating in the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi, India between October 3 and 14.

“We haven’t decided that yet (and) based on how the season goes we’ll decide from there. I mean Commonwealth Games is really late and it could be hard for us to go down there when we are so tired,” Williams said.