Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce is one of the real superstars of the athletics world, with the colorful wigs she wears at every race, her unruly attitude, and her smile all the time. Continuing to win at world championships
She is perhaps one of the veterans of the stars of the World Athletics Championships, but also one of the coolest. We're talking about Jamaican sprinter Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce. In July 2022, she passed her two nationals and became the world champion in the 100 meters. For the fifth time. She's also 35 years old. And wearing her favorite wigs.
Fraser-Pryce was first on track and field fans' radar in 2008. She returned from the Beijing Olympics, where she went as a 21-year-old teenage runner, with a 100-meter gold medal. She earned the nickname Pocket Rocket with her 1.52-meter height and from that day on she became a runner who left her mark on world athletics.
However, in those years, she was somewhat overshadowed by her compatriot Usain Bolt. Because Bolt added records to the medal. When Fraser-Pryce, like Bolt, became the world champion the following year, none of us expected her career to last this long. So it's been five years since Bolt, who was only four months older than himself, left the sport, and Shelly-Ann continues to collect medals. After winning another Olympic title in London 2012, she settled for bronze and silver at Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020. On the other hand, she smiled more at the world championships. After 2009, she became the world champion in 2013, 2015, and 2019 in the 100 meters.
The fact that she maintains her speed despite her advancing age is extraordinary in itself, but she is not satisfied with this and she also competes in the 200 meters. For example, in the last (2022) world championship, this would mean six races with auditions. In fact, she told me that it was not easy at all three years ago in our conversation after the Diamond League race in Birmingham: “Actually, running in two branches is not easy at all, in fact, it is extremely tiring for me. But it is also a great opportunity.” Maybe that's why she had withdrawn from 200 meters to the championship in Doha in 2019, this time she chose to compete.
Fraser-Pryce did not compete in the 2017 season due to pregnancy and gave birth to her son Zyon that summer. From the next summer, Zyon accompanied Shelly-Ann wherever she went. She also explained how this gave her morale: “While I was training, she was playing in the sandbox by the track. I missed her first show in kindergarten because of practice.”
One of Fraser-Pryce's specialties is her wigs. She packs 10 colorful and long wigs in her suitcase before she sets off for major tournaments where she will participate in many races such as the world championships and the Olympics.