Yolanda Gail Devers is an American retired track and field sprinter who competed in the 60 metres, 60 m hurdles, 100 m and 100 m hurdles. Devers is regarded as one of the greatest and most decorated female sprinters of all time. She was the 1992 and 1996 Olympic 100m champion; the second woman in history to defend an Olympic 100m title. She was also the 1993 world champion in the event, becoming the first ever female sprinter to simultaneously hold the world and Olympic titles in the 100m. She was the 1993, 1997 and 2004 world indoor 60m champion. In the 100 m hurdles, she was the 1993, 1995 and 1999 world champion, and the 1991 and 2001 world silver medalist. In the 60 m hurdles, she was the 2003 world indoor champion and 2004 silver medalist.
Jamaica competed at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, from 13 to 29 August 2004. This was the nation's fourteenth appearance at the Summer Olympics as an independent nation, although it had previously appeared in the first four editions as a British colony, and as part of the West Indies Federation. The Jamaica Olympic Association sent a total of 47 athletes to the Games, 22 men and 25 women, to compete only in track and field, badminton, shooting, and swimming. For the second consecutive time in Olympic history, Jamaica was represented again by more female than male athletes.
Veronica Campbell Brown Order of Distinction is a retired Jamaican track and field sprinter, who specialized in the 100 and 200 meters. An eight-time Olympic medalist, she is the second of three women in history to win two consecutive Olympic 200 m events, after Bärbel Wöckel of Germany at the 1976 and 1980 Olympics and fellow countrywoman Elaine Thompson-Herah at the 2016 and 2020 Olympics. Campbell Brown is one of only nine athletes to win world championships at the youth, junior, and senior level of an athletic event.
Allyson Michelle Felix is a retired American track and field athlete who competed in the 100 meters, 200 meters and 400 meters. She specialized in the 200 meters from 2003 to 2013, then gradually shifted to the 400 meters later in her career. At 200 meters, Felix is the 2012 Olympic champion, a three-time world champion (2005–2009), a two-time Olympic silver medalist, and the 2011 world bronze medalist. At 400 meters, she is the 2015 world champion, 2011 world silver medalist, 2016 Olympic silver medalist, 2017 world bronze medalist, and 2020 Olympic bronze medalist. Across the short distances, Felix is a ten-time U.S. national champion.
Sherone Simpson is a Jamaican retired track and field sprint athlete. She is a gold medalist in the 4 × 100 m relay from the 2004 Olympics and silver medalist in 2005 World Championships and now is the silver medalist in the individual event at the 2008 Summer Olympics, after she tied for second with Kerron Stewart in a photo finish.
Kathryn Jane Cook is a former elite athlete, specialising in sprint and sprint relays. She is one of the most successful female sprinters in British athletics history. She is three-times an Olympic bronze medallist, including at 400 metres in Los Angeles 1984. Her other individual achievements include winning the 200m at the 1981 Universiade, finishing second in the 100m at the 1981 World Cup, and winning a bronze medal in the 200m at the 1983 World Championships. She is also three-times a winner of the British Athletics Writers' Association Female Athlete of the Year Award (1980–82).
Merlene Frazer is a retired female track and field sprinter from Jamaica who specialized in the 200 metres. In the 4 x 100 metres relay, she won a World Championship gold medal in 1991 and an Olympic silver medal in 2000. On both occasions, she ran in the preliminary rounds but not the final. Her biggest individual success was winning a World Championship bronze medal at 200 metres in 1997.
Grace Jackson is a Jamaican former athlete who competed mainly in the 100 and 200 metres. She won an Olympic silver medal in the 200 metres at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, and is a former Jamaican record-holder in the 200m and 400m. She was Jamaican Sportswoman of the Year in 1986 and 1988.
Juliet Cuthbert-Flynn is a Jamaican politician and retired track and field sprinter who competed in the 100 metres and 200 metres. As an athlete, Cuthbert-Flynn competed at four Olympic Games, winning two silver medals at the 1992 games held in Barcelona.
Kerron Stewart is a retired Jamaican sprinter who specialized in the 100 metres and 200 metres. She is the 2008 Jamaican national champion in the 100 m clocking 10.80s. She defeated World Champion Veronica Campbell-Brown in the process and now is the 2008 Summer Olympics silver medalist after she tied with Sherone Simpson in a time of 10.98s. She also earned a bronze medal in the 200 metres at the 2008 Summer Olympics with a time of 22.00s. She was born in Kingston and retired after the 2018 season.
The women's 100 metres was an event at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. There were a total of 55 participating athletes, with seven qualifying heats. The top four in each heat qualified for the quarterfinals along with the four fastest remaining.
Since the early 20th century, Jamaica has won 42 Commonwealth Golds, 14 World Championship Golds and 17 Olympic gold medals in athletics alone. Jamaica has a population of 2.85 million people, making it the 138th most populous country in the world.
The women's 100 metres was an event at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. There were a total number of 56 participating athletes, with two rounds, two semifinals and a final. Although both Gail Devers of the United States and Merlene Ottey of Jamaica had clocked the same time in the final at the finish line at 10.94 seconds, snapshot of their photo finish confirmed that Devers had edged Ottey out for the gold medal.
Jamile Samuel is a Dutch athlete sprinter, who specialises in the 100 and 200 metres. She won three bronze medals at the 2010 World Junior Championships in Athletics, thus establishing herself as the third-fastest female runner under the age of 20 in the world. She won a gold medal with the Dutch women's 4 × 100 m relay team at the 2016 European Championships in Amsterdam.
Dafne Schippers is a Dutch retired track and field athlete who competed in sprinting and the combined events. She holds the European record in the 200 metres with a time of 21.63 seconds, making her the sixth-fastest woman of all time at this distance. She also holds the Dutch records in the 100 metres and long jump, and shares the Dutch records in the 60 metres indoor and 4 × 100 metres relay.
The 100 metres at the Summer Olympics has been contested since the first edition of the multi-sport event. The men's 100 metres has been present on the Olympic athletics programme since 1896. The 100 metres is considered one of the blue ribbon events of the Olympics and is among the highest profile competitions at the games. It is the most prestigious 100 metres race at an elite level and is the shortest sprinting competition at the Olympics – a position it has held at every edition except for a brief period between 1900 and 1904, when a men's 60 metres was contested.
The 200 metres at the Summer Olympics has been contested since the second edition of the multi-sport event. The men's 200 m has been present on the Olympic athletics programme since 1900 and the women's 200 m has been held continuously since its introduction at the 1948 Games. It is the most prestigious 200 m race at elite level. The competition format typically has three or four qualifying rounds leading to a final race between eight athletes.
Elaine Thompson-Herah is a Jamaican sprinter who competes in the 60 metres, 100 metres and 200 metres. Regarded as one of the greatest sprinters of all time, she is a five-time Olympic champion, the fastest woman alive in the 100 m, and the second fastest alive in the 200 m.
Jacqueline "Jackie" Pusey is a Jamaican former track and field sprinter. She competed over distances from 100 metres to 400 metres. She represented Jamaica at the 1976 Summer Olympics and competed a second time at the 1980 Summer Olympics.
Leleith Hodges is a Jamaican former track and field sprinter who competed mainly in the 100 metres. She was one of Jamaica's most prominent female runners of the 1970s.
