Fraser-Pryce says intense spirit of competition pushes her into realms of greatness
EUGENE, Oregon — There is no great secret behind her success, says five-time World Championships women’s 100m winner Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce.
She believes her success comes from hard work and divine giftings.
Fraser-Pryce led the Jamaican women to a sweep of the medals in the 100m at the World Athletics Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon on Sunday, running a championship record 10.67 seconds, the third time she has run that time this year.
The sweep of the medals by the Jamaicans was historic as it had never been done at the World Championships.
Shericka Jackson, who won the double at the Jamaican championships, took the silver with a personal best 10.73 seconds, while two-time double Olympic Games sprint champion Elaine Thompson-Herah won her first World Championships 100m medal, taking the bronze with 10.81 seconds.
“The secret behind my successes is that I am a competitor; I love to compete and I believe that God has given me a gift and I somehow feel special,” Fraser-Pryce said in a post-race interview on Sunday.
“I always want to compete and show the work that I have been doing. I am hard-working and driven and I am always hungry to do more because I feel there is more to be done and I definitely believe I can run faster — and once I have that belief, I am not going to stop until I do.”
Ominous words for her competitors as in that sublime 10.67 seconds, just enough time for mere mortals to stretch, Fraser-Pryce added significantly to her incredible legacy as arguably the greatest female sprinter of all time.
It was a record-equalling fifth individual gold at the World Championships, breaking the 10.70 seconds set by disgraced American Marion Jones and at the same time becoming the oldest person to win a World Championships gold medal at age 35 years and 201 days.
The fifth gold also made her the leader in most medals for the event, breaking a tie with American Carmelita Jeter and Jamaican Merlene Ottey, who both won four medals.
This was the third sweep of 100m medals at a global championships that she was involved in, after the 2008 Olympics in Beijing when Sherone Simpson and Kerron Stewart tied for silver behind her, and last year at the Tokyo Olympics when she was second to Thompson-Herah with Jackson third.
The sweep, Jamaica’s response to the American men on Saturday, “was always on the cards and I am glad that I was the one that finished first in the sweep, so I am glad for that”.
“I am glad the other ladies were able to come through and we were able to celebrate a 1-2-3. And [there is one thing] I want to say is that all three of us are coached by three different individuals in Jamaica, and it just speaks to the depth that we have and if you are in Jamaica and if you decide that you want to go anywhere, it can happen — and I am grateful for that.”
Fraser-Pryce — who has a personal best 10.60 seconds, has run 10.80 seconds or lower a mind boggling 27 times, and has won major medals in three different decades — said, “Winning the 100m here is definitely very special and I am doing it at 35 — yes, I said 35 — and I am grateful for that. I have always trusted myself and my coach and believed in my abilities, and once I am healthy I am going to compete.”