Has Jamaica found its successor? On August 1, 2021, the Caribbean island failed to place a runner in the final of the Tokyo Olympic 100m. A first since 2000 for a country that then took over the discipline thanks to the historic performances of Usain Bolt, crowned in 2008, 2012 and 2016. By making the Kingston tartan smoke in 9″77, Thompson not only qualified for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, he rose directly to the favorites for the Olympic Grail, forcing comparison with his glorious predecessors.
Faster than Noah Lyles
The time makes the young runner the 9th fastest man in history. It’s better than Marcell Jacobs in Tokyo (9″80), but it’s also faster than Bolt in Rio (9″81) or the personal record of Noah Lyles, reigning world champion and natural favorite for the title (9″83). And if racing in selection is not the same as competing in the Olympic final, his time in the semi-final (9″82) shows that it’s not a waste of time.
And all this, coming out of almost nowhere. At 22, Thompson qualifies for his first international competition, since he withdrew from the selections for the 2023 World Championships despite an already interesting 9″91. A blossoming as explosive as it is precocious, nationality helping, inevitably reminds everyone of the shadow of Bolt, but the comparison must be tempered. Firstly because Thompson has not won anything yet and comparing him to his compatriot would not be a gift, but especially because neither his classic sprinter profile nor his career correspond to those of his elder.
Closer to Powell than Bolt
Of course, Bolt was only a year younger when he broke the world record in late May 2008 in 9.72 before heading towards the Olympic title, for his first full year in the 100 meters, but the Jamaican was already feared in the 200, his favorite. If Thompson must recall one of his predecessors, especially given his profile, it is Asafa Powell, who also blossomed at 22 years old, and whose personal record is… 9.77. Thompson also comes from the same sprint school as Powell.I think they are very similar. But Kishane is ahead of what Asafa was doing at that age.” estimated Stephen Francis, their common coach, in an interview with Jamaican television TVJ last week. Enough to whet the appetite, even if everything remains to be done.
“He is a very powerful athlete. I think the difference is that we have much better analytical structures for him to train and become better than Asafa.” concluded the man who also trains Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce. Given the average start and the relaxed finish of his protégé in Kingston, the time has probably not finished dropping.
