EUGENE, Oregon — Despite not being at her very best after being slowed by injuries and missing training during the season, Elaine Thompson-Herah was grateful for her first World Championships 100m medal after she placed third in a Jamaican sweep of the medals at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, on Sunday.

While saying she does not think she gets the respect she truly deserves, the five-time Olympic Games gold medallist said she was determined to push through any obstacle and would continue to work hard.

Asked whether she would choose between a gold medal at the Olympics in Paris in 2024 and the World Championships, she said there were no choices, “Both, both, of course!” she answered. “The motive was to have won my first World Championships title tonight, but I am not in the best shape of my life [yet] I still managed to come out here and win my first World Championships 100m medal to go with one in the 200. I had some bumps in the season, my shoulder and the Achilles, and I still got a medal so I am super happy and grateful.”

Thompson-Herah won a silver medal in the 200m at the World Championships in 2015 in Beijing, China and told reporters after the 100m final on Sunday, she was motivated to go for more medals here.

“A medal always gives you motivation; I missed the podium twice before [so] I am grateful that I crossed the line healthy. [The reality is] I have not been training well, I missed a lot of sessions, but still coming out to compete [because] I am a fighter and I know how to perform,” she said. “Tonight was not the best time for me but I am still grateful and will take the 200m round by round,” she noted.

The medal sweep, the second involving her, 100m champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, and Shericka Jackson was not a surprise, she said:, “I knew it was going to be 1-2-3 but was not sure of the order, but happy for us to be part of the history. We did it last year in Tokyo and I am just happy to be part of that.”

Thompson-Herah also said she does not think she gets the respect that a back-to-back Olympic Games double sprint champion deserves but she would not be daunted.

“Well, I don’t think so but I still have to keep working, I still have to perform — that’s my job. And even if I don’t get the respect on and off the track, it doesn’t matter as I have to keep doing what I do and what I love,” she ended.

— Paul Reid