Newly crowned women’s 200m world champion, Shericka Jackson, insists she was determined to put on a show for the much-anticipated event at the IAAF World Athletics Championships in Oregon on Friday.

By any measure, the young Jamaican certainly succeeded in doing so.  En route to the gold medal, Jackson clocked the fastest time recorded for the event in 34 years.  As it stands, only American Florence Griffth-Joyner, whose record still stands at 21.34, has gone faster.

The Jamaican’s time of 21.45 was a new national record and eclipsed the previous mark of 21.53 recorded by her compatriot Elaine Thompson-Herah at the Beijing Olympics last year.

“I wanted to come out here and put on a show and I did just that.  The fastest woman alive, a national record, and a personal best, I can’t complain,” Jackson said.

The 28-year-old has enjoyed a meteoric rise to her lofty position in world sprinting having begun her professional career at the 400m distance in 2015.  The win was the first gold medal for the athlete at any major championship. 

Griffith-Joyner’s world record, however, continues to be elusive but Jackson insists that isn’t a cause for concern at the moment.

“I wasn’t thinking about any time, the world record wasn’t on my mind.  I was just going out there to execute each round as best as possible and when the time comes it comes.”

Five-time 100m World champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce considers her longevity in the sport of track and field to be a blessing having seen so many of her contemporaries bow out.

The colourful Jamaica star first burst onto the world stage in 2008, as a 21-year-old, after capturing gold at the Beijing Olympics.  One year later, the athlete proved she would be a force to be reckoned with after repeating the feat at the 2009 Berlin World Championship. 

In a sport that is marked as much for its brevity at the very top level, as much as it is for blazing speed, 13 years later Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce was once again crowned world champion in Oregon this week after dashing to gold in a blistering 10.67, her fastest time at a major games, at a jaw-dropping 35-years old.

As a testament to her remarkable longevity, the sprinter has remained the one constant in a changing sea of 100m athletes during the period.  In the previous four World Championships finals, Fraser-Pryce has competed against 23 different athletes, the majority of which have now retired from the sport.  

“Each time I step out on to the track I’m always feeling blessed to be able to do it because I know there are so many people I’ve competed with who have retired or they are injured or whatever it is.  I’m just feeling blessed and am grateful to be able to continue,” Fraser-Pryce said.

In addition to being the oldest sprinter to win the 100m title, she also embarked on the journey of motherhood after taking time away from the sport in 2017 to have her first child, only to return to dominate.

“Age is a part of life, everyone will get to that stage, and taking time out to have a child is just part of the journey.”

Jamaica Reggae Girlz forward Khadijah Shaw and midfielder Drew Spence have been named to the Concacaf W Championship Best XI for the recently concluded tournament.

The duo was outstanding for the Jamaica national team who finished third overall at the event behind winners the United States and second place Canada.

The typically outstanding Shaw, the Jamaica national team’s all-time leading scorer, managed to net a tournament-leading three goals, which added up for a very productive 12 overall.

The introduction of Tottenham Hotspurs midfielder Spence was a major boost for the Jamaicans as she racked up a tournament-leading 15 pass interceptions an assist and a goal.

Also joining Shaw and Spence in the W Championship Best XI was Haiti livewire Melchie Dumornay who proved a slippery customer for opposing defenses to handle time and time again.  The Caribbean players were selected as part of a 3-4-3 formation.  The rest of the team was comprised of players from the United States and Canada.

Full squad

GK Kailen Sheridan, Canada 

DF Becky Sauerbrunn, United States 

DF Vanessa Gilles, Canada 

DF Naomi Girma, United States

MF Melchie Dumornay, Haiti 

MF Rose Lavelle, United States 

MF Jessie Fleming, Canada

MF Drew Spence, Jamaica

FW Julia Grosso, Canada 

FW Alex Morgan, United States

FW Khadija Shaw, Jamaica

Reggae Girlz coach Lorne Donaldson insists the team was prepared for a battle of attrition with Costa Rica after several recent close encounters between the teams.

A second-half extra-time goal from Kalyssa van Zanten secured a 1-0 win for Jamaica in a hard-fought encounter against their Central Americans in the third-place playoff.  The win capped off a successful tournament for the Jamaicans who secured third place and with it a chance to qualify for the 2024 Olympics.

Having successfully secured a spot in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, the Jamaicans will now have the chance to make more history when they face defending champions Canada in a home-and-away play-off next year.  Getting past Costa Rica proved to be a challenge. 

“We knew it was going to be a very tight game.  Every time we play Costa Rica it comes down to the second half or overtime so we figured if we could get some speed on the field late on, we could get something, and Kiki came on and had a good finish,” Donaldson said.

The last 6 matches between the teams have been decided by a 1-0 score line with Costa Rica winning 3 of the matches with one draw.  The coach was also full of praise for the young goal scorer.

“She’s been in a few games she’s a rookie, she’s a young player so she got over excited but this game she was calmer.  When we looked in her eyes when I spoke to her, I told her you to have a goal in your boot and gave her some confidence but she has been growing confident.”

The Jamaica Olympic Association issued a statement on Tuesday congratulating the national senior women’s and under-19 men’s teams on their silver medals at the recently concluded Rugby Americas North tournament held at the UWI Mona Bowl.

The women's senior team narrowly missed out on first place losing to USA South 14-17 in the final while the men's under-19 team suffered a 10-56 loss to the same opponents.

“The Jamaica Olympic Association (JOA) congratulates our member, the Jamaica Rugby Football Union, and its players for historic and silver medal performances in the recently concluded 2022 RAN Senior Women’s 12s and Men’s Under-19 tournament at the University of the West Indies,” said JOA President Christopher Samuda in the statement.

The statement continued: “Rugby in the local Olympic movement is quickly becoming a flagship sport and the JOA will continue to invest in our Reggae Crocs who are demonstrating that the nation's talent is deep and our prowess multi-faceted.”

“The JOA will always invest in giving reality to the ambitions and aspirations of our youth in sport. The sport of rugby is tough and gruelling and our men and women continue to put their health on the line for a nation. The JOA remains extremely grateful to our national players for their valour and salute them for their admirable display of patriotism.”

Kalyssa Van Zanten's goal in extra-time strike earned Jamaica's Reggae Girlz a 1-0 victory over Costa Rica to secure third place in the CONCACAF Women’s Championships in Mexico on Monday night.

Jamaica’s senior men's football team, the Reggae Boyz, is set to play Morocco, Qatar and Ghana in a four-team tournament to run from August 20-26, 2022.

World Championships 100m semi-finalist Kemba Nelson will be training with Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce under the guidance of Reynaldo Walcott at Elite Performance come next season.

Despite winning a record-extending fifth 100m world title, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce is hungry for more. The 35-year-old Fraser-Pryce won the World Athletics Championships 100m title in a new championship record of 10.67, breaking the previous record set by the USA’s Marion Jones in 1999.

While wearing a stylish wig mirroring her country's national colours, Fraser-Pryce led a Jamaican sweep as Shericka Jackson claimed the silver medal in a personal best of 10.73, which sees her surpass compatriot Merlene Ottey as the third-fastest Jamaican woman. Only Fraser-Pryce (10.60) and Elaine Thompson-Herah (10.54) have run faster.

Thompson-Herah, the Tokyo Olympics 100m champion, was third this time around in a relatively pedestrian 10.81 as the Jamaican women swept the medal places in consecutive global championships.

However, the moment belonged to the 35-year-old Pocket Rocket, who had won the previous 100m titles in 2009, 2013, 2015 and an unprecedented fourth in 2019. She was fourth in Daegu in 2011 because of injury and missed out in 2017 because she was pregnant with her son Zyon.

“I can't even imagine the amount of times I've had setbacks and I've bounced back and I'm here again," said Fraser-Pryce, who became the first athlete to win five titles in the same running event since the World Championships began in 1983.

Only pole vaulter Sergey Bubka, hammer thrower Pawel Fajdek and discus great Lars Riedel have also won the same single disciple five or more times.

 "I continue to remind myself that sometimes it's not because you don't have the ability, but it's the right time. Today was the right time," she continued.

"I feel blessed to have this talent and to continue to do it at 35, (after) having a baby, still going, and hopefully inspiring women that they can make their own journey," added Fraser-Pryce.

"Whenever I'm healthy I'm going to compete. I'm hungry, I'm driven and I always believe I can run faster and I'm not going to stop until I stop believing that."

Fraser-Pryce has now been involved in three 100m medal sweeps for Jamaica. She was the winner in a Jamaican 1-2-2 finish with Sherone Simpson and Kerron Stewart at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and was second to Thompson-Herah in a Jamaican 1-2-3 at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Shericka Jackson won the bronze.

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce laid claim to being the greatest female 100m sprinter of all time when she won her fifth 100m world title at the 2022 World Athletics Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon on Sunday.

Three of Jamaica’s four ladies advanced to the finals of the 100m at the 2022 World Athletics Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon on Sunday. However, only Olympic champion Hansle Parchment managed safe passage into the finals of the 110m hurdles.

In a display of supreme sprinting from the Caribbean nation of just under three million, Shericka Jackson, Elaine Thompson-Herah and four-time champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce easily won their respective heats keeping alive hopes of a Jamaican sweep.

Jackson, drawn in the first heat with Dina Asher-Smith, Kemba Nelson, Julien Alfred and Twanisha Terry, showed her class while cruising to victory in 10.84 with Asher-Smith finishing second in 10.89 to advance to the final.

Nelson was sixth in 11.25 while Alfred was disqualified after a false start.

Thompson-Herah was equally at ease winning her heat in 10.82 with Marie Jose Ta Lou running a season-best 10.87 for second. USA champion Melissa Jefferson, who was third in 10.92 and Switzerland’s Mujinga Kambundji (10.97) also advanced to the finals as the fastest losers.

There was some controversy in the final heat as Tynia Gaither of the Bahamas was disqualified for a false start. However, the re-start was delayed when she questioned the starters and claimed that she did not move.

She eventually relented and left the track.

On the re-start Fraser-Pryce, who is going for an unprecedented fifth title, topped the heat in 10.93 with Aleia Hobbs of the United States (10.96) taking the other automatic qualifying spot. Great Britain’s Daryll Neita missed out on a place in the final despite running 10.97 while finishing third.

Meanwhile, Olympic champion Hansle Parchment is the lone Jamaican advancing to the final of the 110m hurdles.

Parchment ran an easy 13.02 to easily win the third of three heats that also included Devon Allen, clocked 13.09 for second place. Shane Brathwaite (13.21) of Barbados and Damian Czykier of Poland (13.22) who were third and fourth, respectively also advanced to the finals as fastest losers.

The Polish hurdler was 0.05 faster than Jamaica’s Rasheed Broadbell who was third in his semi-final in 13.27 despite hitting several hurdlers. The heat was won by NCAA champion Trey Cunningham in 13.07 ahead of Spain’s Azier Martinez, whose time of 13.26 was 0.01 ahead of Broadbell.

Orlando Bennett was sixth in the first semi-final in 13.67. Reigning world champion Grant Holloway ran a season-best 13.01 to win ahead of Great Britain’s Joshua Zeller (13.31). Both also advanced to the final.

Jamaica’s Stephenie-Ann McPherson led the cadre of Caribbean women advancing to the semi-finals of the Women’s 400m at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon on Sunday.

Grenada’s Kirani James, Christopher Taylor and Nathon Allen of Jamaica as well as Johnathan Jones of Barbados all advanced to the semi-finals of the 400m at Sunday’s third day of the 2022 World Athletics Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon.

However, it was a bittersweet morning session for the Caribbean quarter-milers as Jamaican champion Juvaughn Powell and Dwight St Hillaire of Trinidad and Tobago both crashed out finishing fourth and sixth, respectively in their respective heats. Their times were not good enough to be among the six fastest losers who advance.

With the top three finishers in each heat automatically qualifying for the next round, James, the fastest qualifier from the Caribbean, finished second in 45.29 with Allen in third in 45.61 in the penultimate of the six heats that was won by Botswana’s Boyapo Ndori in a personal best 44.87.

Taylor was also second in his heat, running 45.68, to finish behind gold-medal favourite Michael Norman who cruised to 45.37.

Jones took second in the opening heat won by world-record holder Wayde van Niekerk in 45.18. The Barbadian, who ran impressively during the NCAA season, ran 45.46 to be among the automatic qualifiers.

Also advancing was Mixed Relay gold medallist Lidio Andres Feliz from the Dominican Republic, who was third in the final heat in 45.87.

 Jamaican gymnast Tyesha Mattis has described her debut for Jamaica competing at the Pan American Youth and Senior Gymnastics Championships as an amazing experience and she cannot wait to don the national colours again at the World Gymnastics Championships in England in October.

The 23-year-old Mattis, who along with her sister, recently switched allegiance from England to Jamaica, was the first of 11 All Around gymnasts to qualify for the World Championships.

The All Around gold medallist at the 2013 Australian Youth Olympic Festival said it felt great to be back in competition after a protracted hiatus.

“For me, it was a big experience just to get out there again,” she said. “I didn’t expect the results I had and it was just nice to represent my country and meet my team from Jamaica and it was just an amazing experience.

“I am just grateful to be here on the team and get this experience and I can’t wait to get out there at Worlds and show everybody my routines and my upgraded routines.”

She thanked Jamaica Gymnastics Association President Nicole Grant for affording her the opportunity to “get out there again.”

At the championships that ended Sunday, Jamaica experienced some misfortune as after finishing eighth in the team competition to qualify for the final team spot, a point was deducted from the team, which resulted in the final spot subsequently going to Cuba.

Brazil won the team competition with the USA and Canada finishing second and third, respectively.

It wasn’t all bad news, however, as Team Jamaica’s women made history by making the team qualifications for the first time for the 2023 CAC Games, joining Mexico, Colombia, Cuba, Panama and Venezuela as well as 10 other individuals from others countries with one or two spots at the meet next year.

Meanwhile, Jamaica’s male gymnast Caleb Faulk made some history of his own when he imprinted his name and Jamaica’s in the FIG Code of Points with a very difficult he skill created and flawlessly executed.

According to Grant, the skill was accepted and has been designated an E-value skill worth a massive five points.

The JAGA president thanked her country’s Sports Development Foundation and the Jamaica Olympic Association for the support they provided in helping the team get to the Pan American Championships.

“Thanks also to all the coaches, parents and gymnasts, who also made great sacrifices to compete at the meet,” she said.

Jamaica’s Oblique Seville narrowly missed out on a podium spot in the men’s 100 finals an event that was entirely swept by the United States at the Oregon World Championships on Saturday.

Pre-race favourite Fred Kerley recovered late on to just edge out compatriot Marvin Bracey who seemed destined for gold after getting off to a brilliant start.  A third American Trayvon Brommel was just behind.  Timewise Kerley never quite lived up to the explosive promise of a 9.79 clocking in the first round, but still took the event in a respectable 9.86.  Just ahead of Bracey who clocked 9.88 for second place.  Brommel stopped the clock in an identical time.

Just behind Brommel was Seville who was fourth in 9.97.  Despite missing out on the podium the result capped off a strong season for the 21-year-old who broke 10 seconds for the first time earlier this year and clocked a personal best of 9.86 in May of this year.  Seville is coached by Glen Mills at the Racers Track Club the same place sprint legend Usain Bolt was conditioned.

Earlier the country’s 100m national champion Yohan Blake failed to make it to the final after finishing 6^th in the semi-finals.