Shelly Ann Fraser-Pryce

Every Olympic or World championship year I almost always have some remarkable athletes to heap praises on. Some athletes have stories that further raise their accomplishments. For this particular woman, and one of my personal favourites of all time, it is rather her accomplishments that have elevated her status and warmed the hearts of fans around the World. Let me educate you a bit about why I love this woman so much.

Shelly Ann Fraser Pryce came to the limelight around the same time Usain Bolt did at the 2008 Olympic games in Beijing. She Won Gold in the 100m race for Women and was part of the era that ushered the World into Jamaican sprinting dominance over the decades to follow. Now with Usain Bolt long retired and perhaps unable to perform at the highest level anymore, Fraser Pryce has continued to do so. She just made the ultra competitive Jamaican sprinting team to the Olympic games on Merit, finishing third in the 100m Trials. She's done this at 37 years of age, when the overwhelming majority of sprinters are retired or at least very well past their prime. We see quite a few athletes delay the hand of time with excellent performances but why Shelly perhaps stands out for me is the fashion she has managed to maintain this remarkable consistency.

Sprinting is one of the most difficult sports to maintain dominance. Agreed that no competitive sports is particularly easy, there are some sports that fare better than others where athletes are able to come up tops even on a bad day. Even Usain Bolt struggled to maintain dominance towards the tail end of his career to put things in perspective. What Shelly has done has nothing short of amazing, and the story gets even richer of you care to go deeper.

She gave birth in 2017 to a son and bounced back into the athletics scene like she didn't miss a day. Her story is nothing short of remarkable. She'll be representing her country at the Olympics but I think she inspires excellence and consistency beyond borders. I certainly see her as a positive role model and wish her all the best as she rounds up her career.