Jamaican sprint great Fraser-Pryce to retire after Tokyo worlds

NEW DELHI: Champion Jamaican sprinter Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce will hang up her spikes after next month’s world championships in Tokyo having redefined what is possible for women in sport.

The three-time Olympic and 10-time world gold medallist announced she would compete for one more season in 2025, saying she had unfinished business after withdrawing from the 100 metres final at last year’s Paris Olympics due to injury.

“I didn’t get the opportunity to do what I know I could have done in that moment,” 38-year-old Fraser-Pryce said on a video call with reporters.

“And it was hurtful. It was the first time in my entire career that I’ve never been able to step to a line to compete.”

Despite limited races this season, the five-foot sprinter known affectionately as the “Pocket Rocket” qualified for her ninth world championships by finishing third at the Jamaican trials in the 100m.

Fraser-Pryce called it a “full-circle moment” from her first world championships in Osaka in 2007, where she travelled as a reserve for the 4x100m relay team.

“I just remember being so unsure of who I was, very mediocre goals, just happy to be there,” she said. “Fast forward to being here now, being able to be in this moment and confident of who I am, the woman I am, the mother I am, the athlete I am, it’s just such a remarkable feeling.”

Fraser-Pryce, who gave birth to son Zyon in 2017, said motherhood has been transformative in her career. Agencies

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