JULIET Cuthbert-Flynn, the 1992 Olympics double sprint silver-medal winner, pointed to the intense competition between the Jamaican trio of Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Elaine Thompson-Herah and Shericka Jackson as fuel for their success, and is expecting another dominant display by the sprinting trinity in the women’s 100m decider at the World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon.

Cuthbert-Flynn, now a Government minister, also believes that the success of the current Jamaican female sprinting flag bearers will serve as stimulus to the island’s upcoming talent, not dissimilar to the influence athletes such as herself, Merlene Ottey and Grace Jackson had on today’s stars.

“I believe this World Championships is going to be rather exciting. We saw what happened last year in the Olympic Games with the Jamaican athletes and this year I think it will be no different,” Cuthbert-Flynn told the Jamaica Observer.

“Elaine Thompson-Herah has been a little bit coy and I guess nobody really knows what she has in the bag. Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, we saw where she opened up with 10.67 in Kenya — even though it was at altitude — but she was able to drop another 10.6. And Shericka Jackson, we saw her run 10.77 this year but I expect the Jamaican women to do very well,” she added before pointing to the importance of the competitive rivalry among the trio.

“You know, I think what’s pushing these athletes is just the high level of competition over the years and we’ve seen the barriers being dropped — women running consistent 10.8 and now they’re running consistent, pretty much, 10.7s — and so I expect a very close finish in this 100 metre for the World Championships.”

Kemba Nelson, who clocked 10.88 seconds for second place at the National Senior Championships, will also represent Jamaica in the women’s 100m.

Cuthbert-Flynn, who described the inaugural World Championships in 1983 as her favourite memory of the championships, believes that while Fraser-Pryce, the defending world champion, may enter the event with a slight advantage, the determining factors will be both mental and physical.

“I think it comes down to, really, the readiness of the athletes with their physical fitness, of course and, more than anything, it’s going to be the mental preparation … just focusing on what it is that you have to do and executing from start to finish with what you have learned and been doing all season long. And so when it comes down to the final of any major international competition it really comes down to the mental toughness and who’s ready physically,” she said.

Meanwhile, several of the world’s top athletics journalists weighed in on the event, considered by many to be one of the most eagerly anticipated at the championships.

Sean Ingle, chief sports writer at The Guardian in the United Kingdom, is expecting the Jamaicans to dominate with Fraser-Pryce coming out on top.

“The women’s 100m is fascinating but while the bookies favour Elaine Thompson-Herah, she clearly isn’t in the shape she was in 2021 yet. Shericka Jackson is reportedly flying in training but if Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce makes her usual bullet start, I would just about go with her to defend her title. A Jamaican 1-2-3? It’s surely more likely than not,” Ingle told the Jamaica Observer.

The BBC‘s Ade Adedoyin is also expecting a Jamaican medal sweep.

“This looks likely to be another clean sweep for Jamaica, just like at the Tokyo Olympics. However, the order in which they finish might well be different this time,” said Adeyodin.

“I can’t wait to see how loud Jamaican fans get for this one at Hayward Field. Part of me wishes we could fly every fan from Penn Relays to the World Championships to ensure it’s pure pandemonium when we see Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce continue to add to her legacy, Elaine Thompson-Herah back her Tokyo success, or maybe even Shericka Jackson surprising these greats. It’s truly remarkable that no one has run faster than Fraser-Pryce’s third-fastest 100m of the year so far (10.70), so she has to be the favourite, in my opinion,” stated Chris Chavez, a leading voice in US athletics and founder of Citius Mag.

The women’s 100m semi-finals will take place today at 7:33, pm with the final set to close day three at 9:50 pm.