National sprinter Joella Lloyd exited the 2024 Paris Olympic Games following a seventh-place finish in heat 8 of the Women’s 100 Meters event held at the Stade de France on Friday.
The 22-year-old athlete clocked 11.37 seconds in the race, a time that put her 42nd overall in the heats. The race was won by Ivory Coast’s MJ Ta Lou whose time was 10.87 seconds.
Jamaican sprint sensation, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, claimed the second spot with a time of 10.92 seconds. The other three qualifying spots were taken by Germany, Belgium and Puerto Rico.
The region’s eyes will now remain fixed on Fraser-Pryce who, at 37, is widely regarded as one of the greatest sprinters of all time.
Her compatriot Shericka Jackson announced on Wednesday that she would not be running in the 100 metre events due to an injury. She will still run in her better race, the 200 metres, where she is the only woman other than the world-record holder, the late Florence Griffith Joyner, to finish in under 21.5 seconds.
Saturday will see Antigua and Barbuda’s Cejhae Greene race in the men’s 100 metre sprint.
The quality of Fraser-Pryce and Ta Lou-Smith was highlighted by the fact that the two fastest non-automatic qualifiers—Rani Rosius (11.12s) of Belgium and Puerto Rico’s Gladymar Torres, with a national record of 11.12s—came from that final heat.
Earlier, St Lucia’s standout Julien Alfred comfortably topped heat two in 10.95s, ahead of New Zealand’s Zoe Hobbs (11.08s) and Italy’s Zaynab Dosso (11.30s). The other Caribbean ladies, Michelle-Lee Ahye (11.33s) of Trinidad and Tobago and Cuba’s Yunisleidy Garcia Abreu (11.37s), placed fourth and fifth in the same heat and missed out on semi-final spots.
Prior to that, Tristan Evelyn (11.55s) of Barbados failed to progress, as she placed sixth in heat one. The heat was won by American World Champion Sha’Carri Richardson in 10.94s, ahead of Patrizia van der Weken (11.14s) of Luxembourg and Australia’s Bree Masters (11.26s).
Meanwhile, Great Britain’s Daryll Neita, with a season’s best 10.92s, led qualifiers from heat three. American Melissa Jefferson (10.96s) and Hungary’s Boglarka Takacs, who clocked a national record of 11.10s, also progressed.
Jamaica’s debutant Tia Clayton did what was required to advance, as she placed second in heat four in 11.00s. Canada’s Audrey Leduc won in a national record of 10.95s, while Great Britain’s Imani Lansiquot (11.10s) also advanced.
Heat five was won by Poland’s Ewa Swoboda in a season’s best 10.99s, ahead of Great Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith (11.01s) and Rosemary Chukwuma (11.26s).
The Caribbean duo of Jamaica’s Shashalee Forbes (11.19s), who replaced Shericka Jackson, and Trinidad and Tobago’s Leah Bertrand (11.27s) safely progressed to the semi-finals after placing second and third in heat six. American Twanisha Terry (11.15s) won the event, while Zahria Allers-Liburd (11.89s) of St Kitts and Nevis, who ran the preliminary round earlier in the day, finished out of contention in eighth.
