KINGSTON, Jamaica — There were contrasting emotions expressed by Jamaican shot putters Danniel Thomas-Dodd and Lloydricia Cameron after the duo’s hopes of making Friday’s final were ended by the narrowest margins.

They finished 13th and 14th with marks of 18.12 and 18.02 meters respectively, with only the top 12 advancing.

To make things worse, Thomas-Dodd, who was an Olympian at Rio in 2016 and Tokyo 2020 (held in 2021 due to COVID), was sitting among the leading dozen until the very last throw of the competition.

Controversial USA athlete Raven Saunders, who has had several run-ins with the sport’s authorities in recent years, including a suspension for missing drug tests, wore a mask and sunglasses while competing in Paris. She launched an 18.62m effort, which nudged Thomas-Dodd out of the qualifiers by a mere four centimetres behind Sweden’s Axelina Johansson.

The Jamaican has a heartbreaking history of near misses, having also seen her chances of defending the Commonwealth title in 2022 denied by a last-gasp effort from Canada’s Sarah Mitton, who managed just 5cm further.

Thomas-Dodd couldn’t hide her current frustration and blamed much of falling just short on the Jamaican authorities, who had denied access for her coach to the training facilities.

Shrouding her obvious and visible disappointment with anger, she pointed out:

“It’s the second Olympics where I have finished in the 13th spot and it’s the second Olympics where I have had my coach denied permission to be here. I have been sitting in the village on my own for two and a half weeks, essentially practicing on my own because I was denied the privilege of having my coach get accreditation.”

She added, “He’s not just my coach – he’s my moral support, he’s my massage therapist… The things I needed today were not there for me, and I needed my coach to help me get through that process, but I had to do everything myself.”

Lloydricia Cameron placed 14th in shot put qualifiers, misses event final at the Paris Olympics. (Photo: Naphtali Junior)

Cameron, 28, and at her second Games, launched a season’s best in the third and final round of the qualifying competition and admitted to having mixed feelings.

“I believe I did great – I didn’t come out with what I wanted, but I’ll definitely be back next year. This has been my best season so far, and I know now what I need to work more on,” she said.

“It was great to do a season’s best, but I’m more motivated this time. My first Olympics (Tokyo 2020) I was more nervous and went out and was a little flat and couldn’t deliver – couldn’t execute properly. We were all inspired by Roje’s (Stona) gold medal in the discus, and I’m happy that the world is now able to see the greatness that is coming from such a small land,” she continued.

Current World Indoor and Commonwealth Champion Mitton topped the qualifiers with 19.77m, which sent her automatically through to the medal decider, with the major shock being the elimination of Chase Jackson (nee Ealey).

The heavily tattooed American, twice World Champion and twice a Diamond League winner, suffered two ‘no throws’ before mounting a modest 17.60m final effort to end her interest in Paris 2024.