Top 150 Olympic Athletes: #53 - Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce

Jamaica

Athletics

Overall Ranks

#13 among Track & Field Athletes

#4 among Female Track & Field Athletes

#3 among Jamaican Olympians

#2 among Female Jamaican Olympians

Olympic Results

2008

100m - Gold

2012

100m - Gold

200m - Silver

4x100m Relay - Silver

2016

100m - Bronze

4x100m Relay - Silver

2020

100m - Silver

4x100m Relay - Gold

Total

Events - 11

Gold - 3

Silver - 4

Bronze - 1

Shelly-Ann Fraser was born on December 27, 1986 in Waterhouse, Jamaica, and was a good sprinter from the time she was a small girl. As a young adult, she was somewhat nervous about competing in big competitions, and wasn't super dedicated to training, but after going to the World Championships in 2007 as a relay alternate, she realized that she enjoyed the experience, and became more focused on her craft, and the results were almost immediate.

The next year, she finished second in the Jamaican Olympic trials in the 100m, earning a coveted spot on the team headed to Beijing. Once there, Fraser won each of her 3 heats to advance to the final, along with her two Jamaican teammates. In the final, Sherone Simpson of Jamaica had a slight lead on Fraser early, but Fraser pulled away in the second half to win easily by 0.2 seconds, with Simpson and Kerron Stewart of Jamaica tying for the silver medal, giving Jamaica all 3 medals, and Fraser her first gold in her first Olympic event.

With the top three 100m runners on the team, Jamaica was expected to cruise to victory in the 4x100m relay, and they had the fastest time in the semifinal heat, but in the final, after Fraser had given them the lead on the first leg, they missed the second handoff and were disqualified.

She won the 100m World Championship the next year, becoming just the second woman ever to win the two major titles in back-to-back years. The following year, she was suspended for 6 months for testing positive for oxycodone, which is not performance-enhancing, but required to be disclosed, which she failed to do. She was married in early 2011, and changed her last name to Fraser-Pryce, then spent much of the year recovering from a calf injury. 

Because of the rough couple of years she had endured, it was a bit of a surprise when Fraser-Pryce won both the 100m and the 200m at the Jamaican Olympic trials, earning her spot on the team headed to London. In the 100m, she won both of her heats to get back to the final, and she had the best start in the final, but by the halfway point, Carmelita Jeter of the USA had pulled even, and the two remained tied right through the finish, where Fraser-Pryce was able to win the gold with a lean at the line, triumphing by .03 seconds to become the third woman ever to repeat as 100m champion.

In the 200m, she won her first heat, but came in second to Sanya Richards-Ross of the USA in her semifinal, though both advanced to the final. In the final race, Allyson Felix of the USA took a slight lead by the end of the turn over Jeter, then pulled away down the stretch to win gold, while Fraser-Pryce came from behind to pass Jeter at the finish to end up with a silver medal.

Her final event in London was the 4x100m relay, which was expected to come down to Jamaica and the USA, who had the top five 100m runners between them. Fraser-Pryce gave Jamaica a small lead after her lead-off leg, but on the second leg, Felix pulled away from Simpson, and the USA had a solid lead the rest of the way, beating Jamaica by 0.59 seconds in world record time, giving Fraser-Pryce another silver medal.

She had graduated from college just before the London Olympics, and felt that she was able to focus more fully on her training after that. In 2013, she won all 3 of her events at the World Championship, the first woman ever to do that. She also became the first woman ever to own the Olympic and WC 100m titles at the same time twice. 

In early 2016, she injured her toe, which made running difficult, so she didn't run in many events, but she still was able to qualify for the Olympic team. She was attempting to become the first woman ever to win the 100m three straight times, and she won both of her heats to reach the final, but in the last race, her teammate, Elaine Thompson, got off to a better start and would not be caught, while Fraser-Pryce finished third to take the bronze medal.

She also ran the anchor leg for Jamaica in the 4x100m relay. It was again expected to be a battle between Jamaica and the USA, but the Americans held the lead the entire way, despite Jamaica's efforts to catch up on the middle legs. Fraser-Pryce was behind by a bit when she took the baton, and was unable to catch up, and Jamaica ended up 0.35 seconds behind and took another silver medal in the event.

In 2017, Fraser-Pryce gave birth to her first child via emergency C-section, which took her away from training for a long time, but she started training again 11 weeks after giving birth, and ran in her first meet in Jamaica in May 2018. By 2019, she was back to form, and even won the 100m World Championship, becoming the oldest woman ever to win the event, and the first mother to win it in 24 years.

In early 2021, she ran a new personal best in the 100m, then won the Jamaican Olympic trials in both the 100m and the 200m, despite being 34 years old. She went to Tokyo for her 4th Olympics, where she and Thompson, now Elaine Thompson-Herah, were the favorites in the 100m. Both won their heats to advance to the final, and they were even early, but Thompson-Herah maintained her top speed longer, and Fraser-Pryce finished 0.13 seconds behind to take silver, her fourth straight medal in the event, making her the first athlete ever to win four 100m medals, regardless of gender.

In the 200m, the first half went almost the same as the 100m, with an even start, followed by Thompson-Herah pulling away by the end of the turn. On the straightaway, she pulled away to win in the second-fastest time ever, while Fraser-Pryce was passed twice on the way home, finishing 0.07 seconds short of a medal in 4th place.

Jamaica had swept the medals in the 100m, making them clear favorites in the 4x100m relay. Fraser-Pryce ran the third leg, and Jamaica had the lead through the first half, though just barely ahead of the USA. Fraser-Pryce was also unable to pull away, handing off to Shericka Jackson with a tiny lead, but the USA had a rough handoff, and that enabled Jamaica to finally create some space, and they won by 0.43 seconds, finally getting Fraser-Pryce her first relay gold.

She considered retirement after the Olympics, but decided to keep competing since she had run personal bests in both of her events in 2021, and she made history again in 2022 when she won her 5th 100m World Championship, becoming the first ever to win 5, and the oldest athlete ever to win a track world championship. She suffered a knee injury in 2023, which hampered her training over the next year, but she still qualified for her 5th Olympics.

She went to Paris in 2024 to try for a fifth medal in the 100m, and she got off to a good start, leading early in her first heat, but she injured her hamstring late in the race and finished second, which advanced her to the semifinal, but she was unable to continue and withdrew from the competition.

She competed through the world championship in 2025, after which she retired at age 38. Her longevity was legendary, and she won medals at 4 straight Olympic games, finishing her career with 8 total medals, including the pair of 100m golds she won to kick off her career. She is obviously one of the greatest Olympians of all time.

Top 150 Olympic Athletes: #70 - Yohan Blake

Yohan Blake

Jamaica

Athletics

Overall Ranks

#18 among Track & Field Athletes

#13 among Male Track & Field Athletes

#4 among Jamaican Olympians

#2 among Male Jamaican Olympians

Olympic Results

2012

100m - Silver

200m - Silver

4x100m Relay - Gold

2016

4x100m Relay - Gold

Total

Events - 8

Gold - 2

Silver - 2

Yohan Blake was born on December 26, 1989 in Saint James, Jamaica, and grew up playing cricket, but after a coach saw how fast he could run, he was encouraged to become a sprinter. In 2009, he became the youngest sprinter ever to break 10 seconds in the 100m, though his record was broken 6 months later. In 2011, he became the youngest-ever World Champion in the 100m, a record he still holds.

He made the Jamaican Olympic team in 2012 by beating Usain Bolt in the Olympic trials, and in the 100m event, he won both of his heats to advance to the final, where he was joined by Bolt, along with Tyson Gay and Justin Gatlin from the USA. Bolt was the defending Olympic champion and world record holder, while Blake was the defending world champion, but in the final, Bolt came from behind early to pass the field and finish in 9.63 seconds, while Blake finished just behind in 9.75 seconds, the fastest Olympic time ever not by Bolt, winning the silver medal.

In the 200m, Blake had also beaten Bolt in the Olympic trials, but Bolt was healthier now, and was the favorite after winning the 100m. Blake again won both of his heats to advance to the final, but Bolt ran a blistering curve and was 2 meters ahead of Blake entering the straightaway. He was not able to make up any distance, but he finished in 19.44 seconds, 0.12 behind Bolt, to win another silver medal, again in the fastest Olympic time ever not by Bolt.

The two medalists teamed up with Nesta Carter and Michael Frater in the 4x100m relay a couple of days later, and they were the favorites, with only the USA given any chance to beat them. Carter gave Jamaica a slight lead on the first leg, which Frater and Blake were able to maintain, and then Bolt took the baton and pulled away slightly to beat the Americans by 0.2 seconds to set a new world record and take home the gold.

He returned to the Olympics in 2016 in Rio, after recovering from multiple hamstring injuries since 2012, competing in the same 3 events. In the 100m, he won his prelim heat, but came in 2nd in his next heat, behind Justin Gatlin, who had won silver at the World Championships the year before, but he still reached the final. In the final, Bolt made his patented move during the middle of the race, while Blake was left chasing, and this time he finished just short of a medal, 0.02 second short of taking the bronze.

In the 200m, he had the third-fastest time in the prelim, but after finishing 6th in his semifinal race, he failed to reach the final. The Jamaicans were still heavy favorites in the 4x100m relay, and Blake was given the second leg in the final, which they won for the third straight Olympics, this time by 0.33 seconds, but not in world record time this time.

Blake returned to compete in Tokyo in 2021, but wasn't as successful this time. He advanced out of the first round of the 100m, but came in 6th in his semifinal, which kept him out of the final for the first time. He also ran in the 4x100m relay, but with Bolt retired, they were no longer favored. He ran the third leg, and they won their heat, but in the final they ended up in 4th place, falling short of a medal by 0.05 seconds.

Blake retired in 2022, and has started a new career as a track coach. Even though both of his Olympic gold medals came in relays, his two silver medals were the fastest losing times in history, and he was always in contention, which makes him one of the greatest Olympians of all time.

Top 150 Olympic Athletes: #118 - Veronica Campbell Brown

Veronica Campbell Brown

Jamaica

Athletics

Overall Ranks

#34 among Track & Field Athletes

#9 among Female Track & Field Athletes

#6 among Jamaican Olympians

#3 among Female Jamaican Olympians

Olympic Results

2000

4x100m Relay - Silver

2004

100m - Bronze

200m - Gold

4x100m - Gold

2008

200m - Gold

2012

100m - Bronze

4x100m - Silver

2016

4x100m - Silver

Total

Events - 11

Gold - 3

Silver - 3

Bronze - 2

Veronica Angella Campbell was born on May 15, 1982 in Clarks Town, Jamaica, into a family of 10 children. She attended school in Jamaica up through high school, then move to the United States for college, first at Barton County Community College, then the University of Arkansas.

She made her first Olympic team at age 18, competing in the 4x100 m relay in Sydney. The USA was the favorite in the event, led by Marion Jones, and the Bahamas was defending World Champion, but with Campbell running the second leg, Jamaica posted the best times in each of the first two rounds. In the final, the Bahamas sprinted out to an early lead, and while Jamaica and the USA kept it somewhat close, they couldn't catch up, and Jamaica ended up with the silver medal.

By 2004 she was starting to come into her own. She qualified for 3 events in Athens, starting with the 100m. She won her first heat, then came in second in her next heat, just .01 second slower than her first race. She also came in #2 in her semifinal heat, but was only .01 second short of the fastest time, before running the final in 10.97 seconds, which earned her the bronze medal in her first individual Olympic event.

Next up was the 200m, an event she hadn't lost in 4 years, but mostly against college competition. She and Allyson Felix were considered the favorites, and Felix ran the best time in the first round, but Campbell had the best time in the final 3 rounds, including the final, where she pulled into the lead on the curve and never looked back, beating Felix by .13 seconds to win gold and become the first Jamaican woman to win an Olympic sprint title.

Her final event was the 4x100m relay, where the USA was again the favorite. The US ran the fastest time in the heats by far, but missed the second baton exchange, leaving Jamaica alone in the lead, and Campbell ran a great anchor leg with a big lead to give Jamaica the gold by more than half a second, the first time Jamaica had won the event. 

In 2007, she married Omar Brown, another Jamaican sprinter, and also 3 medals in the World Championships, gold in the 100m, with silvers in the 200m and the relay. At the Olympic Trials, she finished 4th in the 100m, which meant she didn't qualify for the individual event, but she did qualify for the relay, and to defend her title in the 200m.

The 200m was far from a sure thing, as she had lost every race to Felix since beating her in the 2004 Olympics, including 2 World Championships, but she cruised through all 3 rounds of heats, including a quarterfinal where she finished just ahead of Felix. In the final, she was just to the left of Felix, giving her a clear view of her around the curve, where she was able to close the gap to take the lead as the headed into the straightaway, and then she maintained her lead to the tape, winning a repeat gold by .19 seconds, becoming just the second woman to win the event twice.

Jamaica was expected to dominate the 4x100m relay, since they had the three medalists from the 100m race, but Campbell-Brown running the anchor leg. The USA was their only possible competition, but they had a botched handoff in the heats, so Jamaica was running for the world record in the final, until they mistimed the first handoff and failed to finish the race.

In 2011, she won her first 200m World Championship, making her one of the favorites to win a third straight Olympic gold in the event. She started out the 2012 Olympics with the 100m, where the favorite was Shelly Ann Fraser-Pryce, the defending champion, also from Jamaica, and the event went just as expected, with Fraser-Pryce winning, and Campbell-Brown coming in with the third-fastest time in every round, earning a bronze medal.

Next was the 200m, where she was finally defending World Champion, and she cruised through the heat to advance to the semifinal, where she won a tough heat to advance to the final again. This time, it was Felix who had the best time on the curve and pulled away to win gold, while Campbell-Brown ended up in 4th place, half a second behind Felix's winning time.

After that disappointment, she joined the Jamaican team for the relay, where they were co-favorites with the USA, as long as the two teams were able to pass the baton cleanly, which they had each failed to do 4 years earlier. Jamaica looked to be in the lead after the first leg, but Felix pulled ahead by a bit before the halfway point. Campbell-Brown took the third leg for Jamaica, and made up some ground on the US, but they were still behind when Carmelita Jeter took the baton for the US and pulled away down the stretch to set a new world record, while Jamaica took silver just short of the old world record.

She qualified for her 5th Olympic team in 2016, in the 200m and the relay, but the 200m didn't work out for her this time. She came in 3rd in her first heat, and her time ended up being .03 seconds too slow to advance to the next round, the first time she had failed to make the final.

She ran in the 4x100m relay for the fifth straight Olympics, and once again, it was expected to be a contest between Jamaica and the USA. Jamaica won their heat to advance to the final, while the USA advanced after being interfered with on a handoff. In the final, the two were practically tied at the halfway point, when Campbell-Brown took the baton, but English Gardner from the US ran a blistering leg to leave her in the dust, and American won easily on the homestretch, giving Jamaica another silver in the event.

Campbell-Brown retired after the Rio Olympics, with 8 total medals across 5 Olympic games. Jamaica had already started to build a reputation in sprint events before she arrived, but she was the woman who established Jamaica as a power in the women's sprint events, and her performances, especially in winning the 200m back-to-back, makes her one of the greatest Olympians of all time.