The United States of America’s (USA) Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, who remained undefeated throughout the season in the women’s 100m, converted that performance into a significant achievement in the sweltering heat of Tokyo, as she effortlessly secured her first individual global title with a championship record of 10.61, placing her fourth on the all-time world list.
She triumphed at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo on Sunday, 14 September by a margin of 0.15, marking the second-largest winning margin in the history of the World Championships. Jefferson-Wooden’s achievement also matched the fastest recorded time at a global championship, equaling Elaine Thompson-Herah’s Olympic record set during the Tokyo Games in the same venue in 2021.
The 24-year-old was closely followed by Jamaica’s 21-year-old Tina Clayton, who achieved a personal best of 10.76 seconds, while St Lucia’s Olympic champion Julien Alfred claimed the bronze medal with a time of 10.84 seconds, despite suffering a hamstring injury.
“I came in as a hunter,” Jefferson-Wooden told the World Athletics Media team.
Olympic bronze medallist Jefferson-Wooden said after her landmark effort. “I have never won a world or an Olympic 100m title, and I worked for that this whole year.”
The principal prey, on this occasion, was her contemporary Alfred, who had secured St Lucia’s first Olympic medal in the French capital.
Alfred also secured her country’s first World Athletics Championships medal.
“I am blessed to win this medal,” she said. “It was not my time today. I pulled my hamstring, so we will see for the 200m.”
Meanwhile, the end of a glorious era was signalled as Clayton’s 38-year-old teammate Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, who won this title five times between 2009 and 2022, produced a final, beaming flourish in what will be her last global championships as she finished sixth in 11.03.
“It is a great feeling to put Jamaica back on the podium on the world stage,” said Clayton. “It was an honour to compete with Shelly-Ann. She was someone I looked up to when I grew up. I always wanted to be like her one day, and this is like a dream come true.”
Jefferson-Wooden, whose previous best of 10.65 was achieved during the US trials, successfully repeated her mid-season victory over Alfred. Alfred’s triumph in last month’s Diamond League Final had reignited hopes that she could secure a second outdoor global gold, adding to the one she earned in Paris last summer.
Alfred, who expressed satisfaction with her current form following her Diamond League title win, was eager to add “another gold” to her accolades. She set a strong precedent by recording the fastest heat time of 10.93 the day before. She maintained this performance to win her semifinal, even though she slowed down in the last 30 meters.
In response, Jefferson-Wooden delivered an impressive performance, clocking the fastest semifinal time of 10.73 with apparent ease.
In the final, Jefferson-Wooden’s time was just 0.01 seconds short of Fraser-Pryce’s personal best, who boasts two Olympic titles and a total of 10 World Championships gold medals in her career. Jefferson-Wooden will have one more opportunity to compete for a global podium in the 4x100m event in Tokyo.
“It was not easy,” an elated Jefferson-Wooden said after her victory – speaking as swiftly as she had run. “It looked that way, but it wasn’t. There was a lot of preparation involved, a lot of hard work. At the end of the day, the main thing was the focus on my execution.
“Coming out with the gold medal and a championship record, it’s a great start to my second World Championships. When the gun went off, I just thought: ‘Come on, get out strong’. The rest of the race went like the blink of an eye. I am excited about the 200m now, but I am really happy about this 100m gold.”
Meanwhile, Fraser-Pryce – her head bearing the national colours – acknowledged the reception she had earned upon being introduced to the packed arena.
“It felt really good,” she said. “Now I’m looking forward to the 4x100m.”
The third Jamaican in the final, Shericka Jackson, who is a two-time world 200m champion, concluded her race just outside the podium with a time of 10.88.
In the position directly behind her, the defending champion Sha’Carri Richardson from the United States recorded a season’s best of 10.94.
Richardson was unable to secure one of the six automatic spots for the final, similar to her experience two years ago when she won this title in Budapest from lane 9.
Her initial slip at the start of the semifinal caused four other competitors to falter, resulting in a green card being issued. When the field was given a second chance to start, her stumble during the transition left her in second-to-last place, facing a significant challenge. However, she managed to finish third with a season’s best of 11.00, and then she waited to find out that her time was sufficient to advance to the final.