‘They Skipped Me’- Elaine Thompson-Herah Reveals How a Mishap Nearly Derailed Her at Tokyo Olympics 2020
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TOKYO, JAPAN – AUGUST 03: Elaine Thompson-Herah of Team Jamaica celebrates after winning the gold medal in the Women’s 200m Final on day eleven of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on August 03, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)
The Tokyo Olympics saw Elaine Thompson-Herah win the race dominantly. The Rio Olympics 2016 champion once again showed the world why she is the best in the track and field. Moreover, the fantastic sprinter set the second-fastest time in the competition’s history, which cemented her legacy amongst the greats.
However, her road to success was difficult. She recollected how nervous she was during the start of the race. Even the announcers forgot to announce her name during the lane-wise introduction, which scared her for a bit.
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via Reuters
Athletics – Diamond League – Zurich – Letzigrund, Zurich, Switzerland – September 9, 2021 Jamaica’s Elaine Thompson-Herah celebrates winning the women’s 100m REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann
Elaine Thompson-Herah felt nervous
After qualifying for the Olympics, Thompson-Herah became the favorite to win the competition. But, during the introduction of her race, the announcers forgot to announce her lane-wise.
“I was super nervous, more than normal. I felt like I was going to explode. I could not wait to get into my blocks and just run. But first, they turned off all the lights in the stadium and started to introduce all the finalists.”
“They introduced lane two and then lane three, but then, instead of me in lane four, they skipped me and went to lane nine. I didn’t know why. In the end, they left me for last. Then there was two seconds of silence and we were called to our marks.”
via Reuters
Athletics – Diamond League – Lausanne – Lausanne, Switzerland – August 26, 2021 Jamaica’s Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce celebrates winning the women’s 100m final as Jamaica’s Elaine Thompson-Herah looks dejected after finishing second REUTERS/Denis Balibouse
“I told myself I cannot change anything or fix anything. One last breath and that was it,” said Thompson-Herah.
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Flashed past her opponents
Even though she had her pre-race problems, as soon as the race started, she ran past everyone to claim the gold medal. She finished by setting a stunning time of 10.61 seconds but came up just short of beating the 100-meters world record.
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The sprinter spoke about being disappointed to not break the 100-meters world record. Likewise, she won the 200-meters race as well, equaling Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce’s record of winning two consecutive races. Undoubtedly, Thompson-Herah is a legend on the track.
Next, Elaine Thompson-Herah would hope to break the world record in the upcoming races. Do you think she can do it?
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