PARIS, France ­— Jamaica’s team manager, Ludlow Watts, praised the performances of the island’s young athletes at the Olympic Games here, despite the country securing its lowest medal tally in 16 years with six medals at the Paris 2024 instalment.

While the team was projected to deliver a stronger showing, Watts acknowledged the efforts of the emerging talents, most of whom were representing Jamaica on the global stage for the first time.

Thirty-six athletes, which represents more than half of the athletics team to Paris, made their debut at the Olympic Games, and though he admitted to being less than satisfied with the medal returns, Watts was proud of the level of performances demonstrated by the country’s up-and-coming stars.

“Overall, it is not what we expected, it is not what we are accustomed to,” Watts told the Jamaica Observer.

“However, at the same time, we have placed fourth in the world in terms of overall points rankings, so it is nothing to scoff at, but in terms of comparative performance, it is below what we expected,” added Watts.

Jamaica ended the championships on Saturday in the French capital with one gold, three silver, and two bronze medals — three fewer than the tally from the Tokyo 2020 Games.

The island had won 11 medals at the Rio 2016 Games, 13 at the London 2012 instalment, and 11 during the 2008 Beijing Games, which marked the beginning of the country’s golden era at this level.

Prior to 2008, only once did Jamaica mine more than six medals at the Olympic Games, with the Sydney 2000 cohort bringing home nine medals.

Interestingly, 44 of the island’s overall 86 Olympic track and field medals won prior to the start of the Paris 2024 Games were secured at the 2008, 2012, 2016, and 2020 Games, representing 51 per cent.

Despite winning fewer medals compared to the last Games, Jamaica on both occasions had six different individual medallists and, of note, the average age of the Paris 2024 medallists was just over 25 compared to just over 29 for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

“The youngsters have done remarkably well, and they see themselves as continuing the tradition of success that has been associated with Jamaica’s track and field. They feel that they belong here, and they will always be working hard to ensure that they deliver for themselves and their country,” Watts offered.

Of the six medals Jamaica won at the showpiece, four came in field events, the most in the country’s history. In fact, prior to Paris, the country had won only two field event medals at the Olympic Games.

Roja Stona won gold in the men’s discus throw with a new Olympic record mark of 70.00m, Wayne Pinnock and Shanieka Ricketts won silver in the long jump and triple jump, respectively, while Rajindra Campbell took bronze in the men’s shot put. Jamaica’s other medallists were Kishane Thompson, who won silver in the men’s 100m, and Rasheed Broadbell, who took bronze in the 110m hurdles.

Watts, a veteran sports administrator with more than 40 years experience, expressed his satisfaction with the field events athletes’ performances at the championships and expects them to continue excelling on the international stage.

“The field events athletes were outstanding, and we have looked at not just the medals, but also at the other persons who performed,” he said. “We had a high jumper who got to the final, and we have had other people who performed creditably.”

“So, overall, our programmes are not confined to track events, because we have widened our scope. It only goes to show that the programmes the JAAA [Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association] has implemented are beginning to bear fruit,” Watts underscored.

He also highlighted that injuries to several of the country’s top athletes, including two-time Olympic champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and reigning world 200m champion Shericka Jackson, played a major role in the country’s reduced medal tally. Watts pointed out that the JAAA board will be meeting over the next couple of weeks to review the team’s overall performance.

“Injuries played a big part in our performances as well because some of the persons we normally associate with medals did not compete, but that is part of the game,” he said.

“There are a number of things that we need to highlight, and our board will be assessing the performances in all aspects. Then, we will prepare our plans for going forward. Overall, we did not meet the expectations in terms of medals, but we will always learn from these experiences.”

In the meantime, Ian Kelly, chef de mission for Jamaica’s team, said the Jamaica Olympic Association was still very pleased with the team’s performance despite the drop in the medal tally at the championships.

He pointed to the response to several issues that affected the team in the Olympic Village, notably the ineffective cooling system implemented by the Paris 2024 organisers.

“As the chef de mission, I am very proud of my team,” Kelly said.

“We had one hot day, and within 48 hours we installed different cooling methods for our athletes, bringing in 20 fans and 20 mobile air-conditioning units. We also brought Jamaican food into the village at different intervals. I think we were able to be there for our athletes in both high and low moments, and that is something I am extremely proud of.”

The Olympics will return to the region in 2028 with the United States city of Los Angeles playing hosts.

First time Olympian Roje Stona at 25 years old captured the men’s discuss gold (Naphtali Junior)

Romaine Beckford, at only 22-year-old made the men’s high jump final.Naphtali Junior

Athletes enter the stadium during the closing ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Stade de France, in Saint-Denis, in the outskirts of Paris, on Sunday (Photo: AFP)

Tia Clayton, who will turn 20 years old this week, runs the anchor leg for Jamaica in the women’s 4x100m relay final during the Olympic Games at Stade de France. (Photo: Naphtali Junior)

International Olympic Committe (IOC) President Thomas Bach (L) waves the Olympic flag next to Paris’ Mayor Anne Hidlago during the handing of the flag as part of the closing ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Stade de France, in Saint-Denis