Elaine Thompson

Elaine Thompson-Herah (born 28 June 1992) is a Jamaican track and field sprinter. She rose to prominence at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, completing a rare sprint double to win gold in the 100m (with a time of 10.71 s) and the 200m (21.78 s). Thompson currently ranks as the fifth-fastest woman in the 200 metres event and tied fourth-fastest in the 100 metres.

Elaine Thompson
Elaine Thompson celebrating her silver medal at the 2015 World Championships
Personal information
Born (1992-06-28) June 28, 1992
Manchester, Jamaica
Height1.67 m (5 ft 5 1⁄2 in)
Weight57 kg (126 lb)
Sport
Country Jamaica
SportAthletics
Event(s)100 metres
200 metres
4×100 m relay
College teamUTech
ClubMVP Track Club
Coached byStephen Francis
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)
  • 60m: 6.98
  • 100m: 10.70 NR
  • 200m: 21.66
Medal record
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Olympic Games 2 1 0
World Championships 1 1 0
World Indoor Championships 0 0 1
IAAF World Relays 1 0 0
CAC Championships 1 0 0
Commonwealth Games 1 1 0
Total 6 3 1
Women's athletics
Representing  Jamaica
Olympic Games
2016 Rio de Janeiro100 m
2016 Rio de Janeiro200 m
2016 Rio de Janeiro4×100 m relay
World Championships
2015 Beijing4×100 m relay
2015 Beijing200 m
World Indoor Championships
2016 Portland60 m
World Relay Championships
2017 Nassau4×200 m relay
CAC Championships
2013 Morelia4×100 m relay
Commonwealth Games
2014 Glasgow4x100m relay
2018 Gold Coast4x100m relay
Pan American Games
2019 Lima100 m

Early life

Thompson is a native of Banana Ground in Manchester Parish, Jamaica.[1] Running for Christiana High School and later Manchester High School, Thompson was a good but not outstanding scholastic sprinter; her best result at the Jamaican ISSA Grace Kennedy Boys and Girls Championships came in 2009, when she placed fourth in the Class Two 100 metres in 12.01s.[2] In 2011, her final year at Manchester High, she was left off the track team for disciplinary reasons.[1][2]

Athletic career

After high school, she was recruited to the University of Technology, Jamaica by Paul Francis, brother of MVP Track Club head coach Stephen Francis. With MVP coaching, Thompson's times started improving steadily.[2][3] In 2013, she clocked a season best of 11.41 at the Gibson Relays and placed second behind Carrie Russell at the Jamaican Intercollegiate Championships; at the 2013 Central American and Caribbean Championships in Morelia she won gold in the 4 × 100 metres relay, running the first leg on the Jamaican team as it won in 43.58.[1][4][5] In 2014 Thompson won her first intercollegiate title, placed fifth in 11.26 at the national championships and had a season best of 11.17.[2][4] She represented Jamaica at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, running in the 4 × 100 m relay heats; Jamaica won their heat in 42.44, and went on to win gold in the final with Thompson not in the line-up.[4][6]

2015

Thompson made her international breakthrough in 2015.[7] She repeated as Jamaican intercollegiate champion in March and broke 11 seconds for the first time at the UTech Classic on 11 April, running a world-leading 10.92.[2][8] She then ran 10.97 at the Jamaica International Invitational in Kingston, defeating a field that included Blessing Okagbare and Allyson Felix; the win confirmed her new status as one of the world's leading sprinters.[7] At the Pre Classic in Eugene Thompson was narrowly beaten by English Gardner in the B-race as both were timed in 10.84; as of 27 July 2015, which was Thompson's personal best in the 100 m and ranked her 30th on the world all-time list.[4][9][10]

Thompson was expected to run the 100 metres at the Jamaican National Championships, which doubled as trials for the 2015 World Championships in Beijing; however, her coach Stephen Francis pulled her from that event and instead had her concentrate on the 200 metres, in which she had set a personal best of 22.37 in May.[7][11] The move generated controversy in Jamaica; Francis stated that Thompson was not ready to double, and that she had been prepared for the 200 m in which her main weakness, the start, would not play as large a role.[12][13] Thompson won the national 200 m title in 22.51, qualifying for the World Championships.[14]

At the London Grand Prix on 25 July 2015 Thompson won a non-Diamond League 200 m race in 22.10, defeating Americans Tori Bowie and Candyce McGrone; the time was her new personal best and broke Merlene Ottey's meeting record from 1991.[15][16][17] At the 2015 World Championships held in Beijing, Thompson won the silver medal, behind Dafne Schippers. Thompson's time of 21.66 was faster than the previous championships record but 0.03 slower than Schippers.

2016

In the 100 metres women's final in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro she won the gold medal, ahead of Tori Bowie and the 2012 London Summer Olympics winner and fellow country woman Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce.

In the 200 metre woman's final at the 2016 Olympic Games, Thompson won the gold medal, Dafne Schippers of the Netherlands won the silver medal.[18]

She is the first female Jamaican sprinter to win the 100 metres and 200 metres at one Olympic Games and the seventh overall. Thompson currently ranks as the fifth-fastest woman in the 200 metres event and tied fourth-fastest in the 100 metres.

Achievements

International championships
YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventNotes
Representing  Jamaica
2015 World Championships Beijing, China 1st 4×100 m relay 41.07 WL CR NR1
2nd 200 m 21.66 PB
(+0.2 m/s)
2016 World Indoor Championships Portland, United States 3rd 60 m 7.06
Olympic Games Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 1st2 100 m 10.71
(+0.5 m/s)
1st2 200 m 21.78 WL
(+0.5 m/s)
2nd 4×100 m relay 41.36 SB
2017 World Relays Nassau, Bahamas 1st 4×200 m relay 1:29.04 CR NR3
World Championships London, United Kingdom 5th 100 m 10.98
(+0.1 m/s)
2018 World Indoor Championships Birmingham, United Kingdom 4th 60 m 7.08
2018 Commonwealth Games Gold Coast, Australia 4th 200 m 22.30 SB
(+0.9 m/s)
2nd 4×100 m relay 42.52
2019 World Relays Yokohama, Japan 3rd 4×200 m relay 1:33.21
Pan American Games Lima, Peru 1st 100 m 11.18
(-0.6 m/s)
World Championships Doha, Qatar 4th 100 m 10.93
(+0.1 m/s)
7th (heats) 200 m 22.61 Q4
(+0.7 m/s)

Circuit wins
  • IAAF Diamond League: 2016 (100 m), 2017 (100 m)
    • 2015: London (200 m), Zürich (4×100 m relay)
    • 2016: Rabat (100 m), Rome (100 m), Lausanne (100 m), Zürich (200 m), Brussels (100 m)
    • 2017: Doha (200 m), Shanghai (100 m), Paris (100 m), London (100 m), Rabat (100 m), Birmingham (100 m), Zürich (4×100 m relay), Brussels (100 m)
    • 2019: Rome (100 m), London (200 m & 4×100 m relay), Paris (100 m)
  • IAAF World Indoor Tour

Personal bests
EventTimeVenueDateNotes
60 m6.98Birmingham, United Kingdom18 February 2017WL[22]
(indoor)
100 m10.70Kingston, Jamaica1 July 2016WL =NR1
(+0.3 m/s)
200 m21.66Beijing, China28 August 2015(+0.2 m/s)
4×100 m relay41.07Beijing, China29 August 2015WL NR2
4×200 m relay1:29.04Nassau, Bahamas22 April 2017NR3

Seasonal bests
100 metres
  • 2013: 11.41
  • 2014: 11.17
  • 2015: 10.84
  • 2016: 10.70
  • 2017: 10.71
  • 2018: 10.93
  • 2019: 10.73
  • 2020: 10.85
200 metres
  • 2013: 23.73
  • 2014: 23.23
  • 2015: 21.66
  • 2016: 21.78
  • 2017: 21.98
  • 2018: 22.30
  • 2019: 22.00
  • 2020: 22.19

Personal life

Thompson is married to former athlete Derron Herah [23]

References
  1. Foster, Laurie (23 June 2015). "Look Out For Elaine Thompson". Jamaica Gleaner. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  2. Walker, Howard (20 May 2015). "Sensational Elaine Thompson keeps rising and rising". The Jamaica Observer. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  3. "MVP athletes among world's best - James". Jamaica Star. 24 April 2015. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  4. Elaine Thompson at Tilastopaja (registration required)
  5. http://en.omriyadat.com/american-athletics/elaine-thompson-diamond-league-athletics
  6. "Glasgow 2014 - Elaine Thompson Profile". Commonwealth Games Federation. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  7. Walker, Howard (27 June 2015). "MVP's masterstroke?". The Jamaica Observer. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  8. Walker, Howard (12 April 2015). "UTech's Thompson blazes 10.92sec for 100m to outshine Bolt, Fraser-Pryce at UTech Classic". The Jamaica Observer. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  9. Sully, Kevin (31 May 2015). "Eugene: Barshim soars, sprinters fly". IAAF. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  10. Elaine Thompson Wins Women's 100m | Brussels Diamond league. Retrieved on 2016-09-10.
  11. Walker, Howard (25 June 2015). "Elaine Thompson withdraws from 100m at National Senior Champs". The Jamaica Observer. Archived from the original on 14 August 2016. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  12. Lowe, Andre (27 June 2015). "National Trials: Francis defends decision to run Thompson in 200m". Jamaica Gleaner. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  13. Higgins, Orville (3 July 2015). "Lay off Stephen Francis". Jamaica Gleaner. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  14. Lowe, Andre (29 June 2015). "Birthday win for Thompson". Jamaica Gleaner. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  15. "Londres: La Jamaïcaine Elaine Thompson domine le 200m". L'Équipe (in French). 25 July 2015. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  16. http://en.omriyadat.com/american-athletics/elaine-thompson-jamaica-sprint-diamond-league
  17. Brown, Matthew (25 July 2015). "National 100m records for Schippers and Asher-Smith in London – IAAF Diamond League". IAAF. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  18. Boylan-Pett, Liam (17 August 2016). "Rio 2016: Elaine Thompson wins gold medal in women's 200m run". SB Nation. Retrieved 18 August 2016.
  19. "ATHLETE PROFILE Elaine THOMPSON". World Athletics. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
  20. Pantorno, Joe (17 August 2016). "Olympic Track and Field 2016: Women's 200M Medal Winners, Times and Results". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
  21. "200 Metres Women - Round 1" (PDF). IAAF. 30 September 2019. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
  22. "Thompson Shines Indoor". The Gleaner. 18 February 2017. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
  23. "Head over heels". Jamaica Observer. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.