Three-time Olympic champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce received a special tribute in Waterhouse, St Andrew when the road where she grew up was renamed in her honour at a ceremony held on Sunday.
Previously known as Ashoka Road, it will now be known as Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce Drive.
The renaming is in recognition of her achievements in track and field and her unwavering dedication and contribution to Waterhouse and the wider Jamaica.
One of the greatest sprinters of all time, Fraser-Pryce is a 10-time World Champion and has secured eight Olympic medals.
She is also the only sprinter, male or female, to win five world titles (2009, 2013, 2015, 2019 and 2022) in the 100m.
“We are a community and you have raised me. You are my family and I am expecting that when you walk on this street, you understand that you are walking in greatness,” Fraser-Pryce said addressing the community during Sunday’s ceremony.
Mayor of Kingston, Councillor Andrew Swaby, noted that the renaming of the road will serve to inspire the next generation.
“This road, this Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce Drive, is not just for her. It’s for every child in this community who walks to school with a big dream. It’s for every teenager who wonders if anyone will ever call their name with respect. It’s for every young man and every young woman who needs to know that where they are from doesn’t place limits on where they can go,” he said.
“Every time a child sees this sign, every time someone passes by it should spark something inside them. It should remind them that their circumstance does not define them. Their mindset, their work ethic [and] their passion. That’s what matters most,” Swaby added.
The sign originally had her last name misspelled as “Fraser-Price” but a correct sign was installed on Monday afternoon.
KSAMC CEO, Robert Hill, spoke to the media while the repair was being made on Monday.
“We realized upon the unveiling that the last name of the hon. Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce was spelled incorrectly. I immediately apologized to all gathered, particularly Fraser-Pryce, in regards to the error in the spelling and committed that it would be fixed in the shortest possible time which would’ve been first thing today,” he said.
The name change was originally announced on October 9 last year during a ceremony where the ‘Pocket Rocket’ as she is affectionately called, also made a sizeable donation of US$50,000 (approximately $7.9 million JMD) to her alma mater, the Wolmer’s Trust High School for Girls.
Last summer Fraser-Pryce also assisted 25 students via her charitable organisation, the Pocket Rocket Foundation in which 25 student-athletes were awarded $100,000 each.
This February, the Jamaican sprinting legend also received the Key to the City of Kingston at which point she surprised the ceremony attendees by revealing a US$50,000 donation to her alma mater.