Elaine Thompson-Herah will not win a third consecutive Olympic 100m title. The Jamaican will not participate in the Paris Games due to an Achilles tendon injury.
“I’m hurt and devastated to miss the Olympics this year, but at the end of the day it’s about sport and my health comes first,” Thompson-Herah, 31, wrote in a statement posted to social media social.
The sprint star had already given up on participating in the half-lap in Paris and had initially only registered for the 100m for the Olympic selections scheduled for June 27 to 30 in Kingston. During her last race at the beginning of the month in New York, she finished last in the 100m, in 11”48.
“Little tear”
Thompson-Herah had to be carried off the track and returned to the locker room in the arms of two other people, grimacing. She said Wednesday that she immediately realized the severity of her injury.
“I sat on the ground because I couldn’t put any pressure on my leg while I was being carried off the track,” she wrote. A medical examination then revealed a “small tear” in the Achilles tendon, she said.
“I returned home with the firm intention of continuing to push and prepare for the national trials, in order to have another chance to participate in my third Olympic Games, but my leg did not allow me to do so,” she regretted.
Despite this mishap, she affirmed that she would continue her career as a sprinter. “It’s a long road, but I’m ready to start again, keep working, make a full recovery, and return to my track career,” she wrote.
An extraordinary track record
Elaine Thompson-Herah has never won individual sprint gold at the world championships, but she has been dazzling in the Olympic arena. She has five Olympic gold medals to her name: two in the 100m, two in the 200m (2016 and 2021) and one in the 4x100m relay in 2021.
His 100m personal best is 10.54, set in Eugene, Oregon in August 2021. This is the second fastest time in history, just behind the world record of 10.49. established by Florence Griffith-Joyner in 1988.
ats, afp
