Not sure if anyone had a chance to catch some of the excitement at the recent IAAF World Championships in Athletics held in Daegu, South Korea from August 27 – September 4, 2011.
The Jamaican track team won an astounding 9 medals, including the Gold medal for the men’s 100 m won by Yohan Blake; the Gold medal for the men’s 200 m won by Usain Bolt; the 4 x 100 m men’s Jamaican relay team, including Nesta Carter, Michael Frater, Yohan Blake and Usain Bolt, won the Gold medal and set a world record (see video below).
And it wasn’t only the men burning up the track! Veronica Campbell Brown won the Gold medal in the women’s 200 m race (see video below). Jamaica’s 4x400m women added to the country’s medal tally after winning silver in the final in the IAAF World Championships in Daegu, South Korea. Rosemarie Whyte, Davita Prendergast, Novlene Williams-Mills and Shericka Williams, ran 3:18.71s for a Jamaican national record.
Someone to watch is Jermaine Gonzales who just missed a medal in the final men’s 400m race. Jermaine Gonzales (aka, “Gonz”) is the fastest 400 meter runner in Jamaica. He set the Jamaican National record of 44.40 during the 2010 season and is a close friend of Usain Bolt. They’re both coached by Jamaican legend Bert Cameron, and train at the IAAF high performance centre in Kingston.
And of course, Usain Bolt continued to be the crowd favorite – whipping up a media frenzy with his super-human speed, magnetic personality, and lovable antics. Unprecedented crowds showed up even for the early heats in which Bolt appeared. It was heartwarming to hear the national anthem from this small Caribbean nation called Jamaica being played over and over during the medal ceremonies.
We wish them all the success in Zagreb where the Jamaican runners are competing in the Zagreb World Challenge. Bolt just ran his season best in the 100 m finishing in 9.85 seconds! These Jamaican athletes really make us proud!