NATIONAL 400m record holder Nickisha Pryce says although illness robbed her of a likely medal at this year’s Olympic Games in Paris, that episode is dead centre in her rear-view mirror, noting that she is determined to return stronger than ever in the coming season.

Pryce, 23, was one of the heavy favourites to win the gold medal at the prestigious event in the French capital. However, she failed to advance from her semi-final after finishing fourth with a time of 50.77 seconds, missing out on a spot in the medal round.

Her failure to advance to the final sent shockwaves throughout the championships, especially after she entered the event with the then world-leading time of 48.57s.

“You know that I had a very long season so I went there with my leg heavily taped, but before that, I went to London, ran 48.57, and then I got sick,” Pryce explained. “I went to Paris — and at the time I was still sick so I never really felt good going to Paris — but I was like, ‘I want to make the final.’ But, I didn’t make the final.

“I tried my best in Paris but I felt disappointed. It is what it is and it just didn’t happen for me, because I really wanted to make it to the final but I didn’t. But, it was my first Olympics,” Pryce reasoned.

Pryce, who recently completed her studies at University of Arkansas, won national 400m titles in 2023 and 2024. She ended her collegiate career this season in fine form, breaking both the NCAA 400m record and the Jamaican national record with a time of 48.89s. Pryce later improved on that performance, lowering the national record to 48.57s at the London Diamond League.

Disappointment aside, Pryce noted that she has moved past her Olympic Games setback and is now focused on preparing for the 2025 season, promising to pour everything into her preparations for the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan, the marquee for 2025. There she will be looking to add individual glory to the silver medal she won as a member of the 4x400m relay team from the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest.

“I will come back stronger. Yes, I have gotten over the disappointment in Paris and I am getting ready for Tokyo,” Pryce declared.

She emphasised that her main focus going into the 2025 season is to stay healthy and continue improving in the sport, paying more attention to performances and less on the clock.

“If the fast times come, then they will come,” she shrugged.

“At this point, anything that happens just happens, because I’m not going to say that I’m going to go out there and run any fast times. I never prepare to say that I am going to go out there and run fast times; if it happens, then it just happens.”

Pryce is scheduled to compete in front of her home fans at Grand Slam Track’s curtain-raiser at the National Stadium in Kingston in April 2025.