KINGSTON, Jamaica — Double Olympic champion Elaine Thompson described her season opening win in her women’s 60-metre heat at the 2018 Queen’s/Grace Jackson track meet on Saturday as “a build-up that felt more like training”.

The 26-year-old Thompson, who struggled with an Achilles injury last season, powered away from the field to win in 7.24 seconds.

“I feel great, give God thanks. For 2019, my main focus is just to stay healthy and pain free. Each race is a build up to prove strength and fitness, but this one felt more like training just to execute and see where I am at,” she told reporters after the race.

With reference to her Achilles injury, Thompson explained: “It’s a hard one to deal with, and I’ve dealt with it for three seasons, but it’s hard to treat medical-wise so I just try to improve the best that I can in spite of it”.

With regards to the rest of the season, the sprinter leaves that up to Coach Stephen Francis. “Right now I’m not sure what coach has in store but my focus is to get fit, put in the work and continue training,” she said.

Thompson holds the 60m outdoor national record of 7.02 seconds set at the Queens/Grace Jackson Invitational Meet in 2017.