Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce participant in athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics – women's 4 × 100 metres relay
Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce OD, OJ (née Fraser; born December 27, 1986) is a Jamaican track and field sprinter competing in the 60 metres, 100 m and 200 m. She is widely regarded as one of the greatest sprinters of all time.
One of the most enduring track athletes in history, Fraser-Pryce’s career spans over a decade and a half, from the late 2000s to the 2020s. Her success on the track, including her consistency at major championships, helped to usher in the golden age of Jamaican sprinting. In the 100 m, her signature event, she is a two-time Olympic gold medallist and a five-time world champion. In the 200 m, she has won gold and silver at the World Athletics Championships, as well as an Olympic silver medal.
An eight-time Olympic medallist, she rose from relative obscurity at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, becoming the first Caribbean woman to win gold in the 100 m. At the 2012 London Olympics, she became the third woman in history to defend an Olympic 100 m title. After injury affected her season, she won bronze at the 2016 Rio Olympics. Thirteen years after her first Olympic win, she won a silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, becoming the first athlete to medal in the 100 m at four consecutive Olympic Games.
At the World Athletics Championships, Fraser-Pryce is one of the most decorated athletes in history, winning ten gold and four silver medals. She is the only sprinter to win five world titles in the 100 m—in 2009, 2013, 2015, 2019, and 2022. Her win in 2019 made her the first mother in 24 years to claim a global 100 m title, while her win in 2022 at age 35 made her the oldest sprinter ever to become world champion. In 2013, she became the first woman to sweep the 100 m, 200 m and 4 × 100 m at the same World Championship, and was voted the IAAF World Athlete of the Year. She also won the 60 m world indoor title in 2014, becoming the first ever female athlete to hold world titles in all four sprint events at the same time.A dominant force in women's sprinting, Fraser-Pryce has won more global 100 m titles than any other sprinter in history. Nicknamed the "Pocket Rocket" for her petite stature and explosive block starts, her personal best of 10.60 seconds makes her the third fastest woman ever. In 2022, CBC Sports recognized her as the greatest 100 m sprinter of all time, while many sources, including Athletics Weekly, described her as the greatest female sprinter in history. In 2019, she was included on the BBC's list of 100 inspiring and influential women in the world.At the Olympics in Rio, Fraser-Pryce ran a new season's best of 10.88 s to win her semifinal, qualifying as joint fastest for the final with Thompson. However, she was in visible discomfort after her semifinal, crying and limping off the track. In the 100 m final, she had a quick start and finished in a season's best 10.86 s, winning the bronze. Thompson secured Jamaica's third successive 100 m Olympic gold in 10.71 s, while Tori Bowie earned silver in 10.83 s. Although she fell short of defending her Olympic crown, Fraser-Pryce revealed that she had exceeded her own expectations, describing her hard-fought bronze medal as her "greatest ever." Closing out the Olympics, she collected a silver medal as part of the women's 4 × 100 m relay team in a season's best 41.36 s. The United States claimed their second consecutive gold in this event in 41.01 s.After the Olympics, Fraser-Pryce briefly parted ways with longtime coach Stephen Francis, whom she shared with Thompson. At the end of August, Francis disclosed that Fraser-Pryce was unhappy with their preparation for the Olympics, and had expressed a lack of confidence in his training programme. He also alluded to her dissatisfaction over the years with being unable to surpass her 10.70 s personal best (set in 2012). However, with no official statement, Fraser-Pryce and her coach reconciled and she resumed training at the MVP Track Club in November of that year.
engaged in involved in took part in played a role in contributed to