Jamaican sprinter Shericka Jackson WITHDRAWS from 100m at the Paris Olympics – with two-time world champion to focus on 200m instead
- Jamaica’s Shericka Jackson will not compete in the 100m in Paris Olympics
- Jackson withdrew from a pre-season race in Hungary earlier this month with an injury
- She will still run her favourite 200m, where she is the second fastest of all time
Jamaica’s two-time 200-meter world champion Shericka Jackson will not compete in the double sprint at the Paris Olympics. She has removed the 100 meters from her program, saying she did so to protect her body.
Jackson, 30, who was injured in her final competition before the Games in Hungary on July 9, ran her season-best time of 10.84 seconds to win the 100 meters at the Jamaican trials last month.
“It’s a combination of things,” Jackson said Wednesday during a media event at Puma House. “I got injured in Hungary and it’s a good decision to do one event.
“I think it’s just to protect my body. I’ve been doing both events for the last three years, and I think this (decision) is a combination of both, just focusing on one event and (what happened in Hungary).”
Jackson also won silver at the 2022 and 2023 World Championships and bronze in the shorter distance at the Tokyo Olympics.
Jamaica’s two-time 200m world champion Shericka Jackson will not compete in the 100m
Jackson was out with an injury during her final competition before the Olympics and will focus on the 200m
The sight of Jackson retiring from the Istvan Gyulai Memorial in Hungary with an injury sent shockwaves through the sport. She was leading with about 50 meters to go before she stopped and limped across the finish line.
“I think it was a good decision (to withdraw from the 100m),” she said. “The coach and I made a decision and it was in the best interest of both of us.
“I’m always at peace,” she added. “You have to do what’s best for your body, your mind and your soul. I’m okay with the decision.”
Jamaica’s athletics manager Ludlow Watts broke the news earlier on Wednesday that Jackson had given up her spot.
‘Sashalee Forbes is her replacement in the women’s 100m. I don’t know why, I’m just looking at the outcome.’
Forbes finished fourth in the 100 meters at the Jamaican trials in 11.04 seconds.
Olympic debutant Tia Clayton and two-time Olympic 100m champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce are Jamaica’s top medal contenders in the prestigious event.
Meanwhile, Elaine Thompson-Herah, who won the sprint double at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and three years ago in Tokyo, will not defend her titles after being forced to withdraw from the Jamaican trials due to an Achilles tendon injury.
American world champion Sha’Carri Richardson, who has the world’s best time this year with 10.71 seconds, starts as the favorite for the gold medal in the 100 meters.
Jackson similarly won silver in the 100m at both the 2022 and 2023 World Championships
The United States has not won the women’s 100-meter title in the 28 years since Gail Devers stepped onto the podium at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
American Marion Jones crossed the finish line first in Sydney in 2000, but her medal was stripped due to doping violations.
The preliminary rounds of the women’s 100 metres at the Paris Olympics begin on the second day of athletics at the Stade de France on Friday. The semi-finals and final will be played on Saturday.