"I'm thinking I'm gonna do long jump or hurdles or high jump": Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce opens up about sprinting in school

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce recently recalled her first day of track training in school, where her coach lined up all the athletes and put them into categories like high jump, long jump, and 400m, but saved her for the 100m. The three-time Olympic gold medalist also called herself the 'Hundred Queen', taking pride in her decision to stick with the 100m.

Fraser-Pryce, considered one of the greatest sprinters of all time, was active in athletics since her school days, having run barefoot in primary school. She attended the Wolmer's High School for Girls in Jamaica and was always a familiar face on the track. One of her first achievements came at 16 when she won the 100m bronze at the Inter-Secondary School Girls and Boys Championships.

Fraser-Pryce has always been laser-focused on the 100m, especially at the Olympic level. In an interview with Togethxr, as posted on its Instagram page, the eight-time Olympic medalist shared about her first day of track training in school, when her coach's decision to keep her in the 100m decided her future.

"It started from school. So, I went to track training at Wolmer's and it was my first day. We all lined up on the field and our coach was putting us in different categories. And he was like, 'Okay then, you're gonna do high jump, you're gonna do the long jump, you're gonna do the 400m,'" Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce said.

She continued:

"And everybody was spread out and then I was just standing there. And I'm like, 'So what I'm gonna do?' I'm thinking I'm gonna do long jump or hurdles or high jump. And he said, 'No, you're a sprinter, you stay.' Hundred, one hundred and that was it. I never touched another event from that day. The Hundred Queen."

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce announced retirement after the 2024 Paris Olympics

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce at the Olympic Games-Paris 2024 - Source: Getty

The 37-year-old, who started her Olympic career with the 100m gold in Beijing in 2008, announced her retirement after the 2024 Games to spend more time with her family.

"My son needs me. My husband and I have been together since before I won in 2008. He has sacrificed for me. We’re a partnership, a team. And it’s because of that support that I’m able to do the things that I have been doing for all these years. And I think I now owe it to them to do something else," she said. (via Essence)

In a turn of events, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce scratched herself out from the 100m semi-finals in Paris after suffering an injury. The screen flashed 'DNS' just ahead of her semi-final race against the likes of Sha'Carri Richardson and Julien Alfred, asserting the end of her storied career.