The gun cracks, and Shelly‑Ann Frazer-Pryce bursts from the blocks, her bullet‑fast start still magical at 38. She knew everyone in the stadium did; this was her final dance on Jamaican soil, and she raced like it. At Kingston’s National Stadium on June 27, she clocked a season’s best of 10.91 seconds to finish third, behind the up‑and‑coming Tina Clayton (10.81 s) and Shericka Jackson (10.88 s). The three of them have qualified for the World Athletics Championship in September 2025, and if Shelly is going, she is making history again. What would it be this time?

If the 38-year-old is there in Tokyo, donning a sprinting gear and lining up on the track, know that she would then be standing head to head with the Jamaican legend, Danny McFarlane, for Jamaica’s most World Championship appearances. Shelly stands at eight, McFarlane holds the record at 9. Danny McFarlane, born June 14, 1972, is a retired Jamaican hurdler and quarter-miler, renowned for his Olympic and World Championship success. He has two Olympic silver medals and has claimed five World Championship silver medals as part of Jamaica’s men’s 4×400 m relay teams in the years 1995, 1997, 1999, 2001, and 2003.

In 2009, he matched the record for most World Championship appearances, tied with Canadian distance runner Tim Berrett. This would also mean that when Shelly goes to the world championships, she would also be looking at equaling a world record. Also, at 38, if she is making the team, then she would be Team Jamaica’s oldest athlete to participate in the World Championships, overtaking Danny McFarlane and Merlene Ottey, both of whom represented Jamaica at 37.

Merlene Ottey was born on May 10, 1960, and was primarily a 200-metre runner. Ottey won the World Championships at that distance in 1993 and 1995, adding a gold in the 1991 4×100 relay. In all, Ottey won 14 medals at the Worlds, with three golds, four silvers, and seven bronze medals between 1983 and 1997. She adopted Slovene nationality on 27 October 2002, following a dispute with the Jamaican federation over her participation at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

Shelly‑Ann Fraser‑Pryce was 20 years old when she made her World Championships debut at Osaka 2007. Born on December 27, 1986, she competed in that relay just months shy of her 21st birthday during the championships held from August 24 to September 2, 2007. Ever since then, she has been a dominant force at the World Championships. She earned a silver medal as part of Jamaica’s 4 × 100 m relay team

Shelly‑Ann Fraser‑Pryce at the World Championships

After Osaka, two years later in Berlin 2009, she turned in a career‑defining 10.73 s (a Jamaican national record at the time) to seize her first individual gold in the 100 m, then anchored Jamaica to another relay gold. At Daegu 2011, she anchored Jamaica to silver in the 4×100 m relay. Then came Moscow 2013, where she cemented her legacy, sweeping the 100 m, 200 m, and 4×100 m—a historic triple gold—clocking 10.71s for her 100 m win, the largest margin ever at World Championship finals.

In Beijing 2015, she successfully defended her 100 m crown in 10.76 seconds and again anchored Jamaica to relay gold, helping set a championship record of 41.07 seconds in the women’s 4×100 m. Then came the big break, when the Pocket rocket became the Mommy rocket after giving birth to her son Zyon in 2017. After becoming a mother, she returned to Doha in 2019 to clinch 100 m gold in 10.71 s, making her the oldest woman and first mother since 1995 to win that title, and added another relay victory (gold 100 m & gold relay). 

In Eugene 2022, at age 35, she shattered the championship record with 10.67 seconds for her fifth 100 m world title, leading a Jamaican sweep (gold 100 m). Then in Budapest 2023, she added bronze in 10.77 seconds and silver in the 4×100 m relay—her 16th World Championships medal (10 golds, 5 silvers, 1 bronze)—underscoring an unparalleled legacy of speed. After that, she took a break from track and field to support her husband and son. This is the season when she would be retiring from the sport. Usain Bolt himself came to see her last race in Jamaica, so it only makes sense that she makes it to Tokyo and bids a great farewell. Let’s see if she is going to the 2025 worlds. What do you think?