Will Shelly Fraser repeat Bolt's glory?

Fraser Pryce
Fraser Pryce

Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce of Jamaica is aiming to become the first woman to win three Olympic gold medals in the women's 100m, which starts on Friday 30 July at the Tokyo Olympic Stadium.

Fraser Pryce will be 34 years and 216 days old on the day of the women's 100m final (31 July). She can become the oldest Olympic gold medal winner in this event. The Jamaican sprinter won gold in the women's 100m at the Olympic Games in 2008 and 2012, and took bronze in 2016.

The 34-year-old can become the first athlete to win four Olympic medals in the women's 100m event.

Shelly Fraser shares the record of three Olympic medals with Merlene Ottey, a Jamaican/Slovenian sprinter, who took one silver and two bronze medals representing Jamaica. Fraser Pryce holds the record of four world titles in the women's 100m event: 2009, 2013, 2015, 2019.

Shelly Fraser's top competitors in the 100m sprint event

Another Jamacian in the race is Elaine Thompson Herah. She won the 100m and 200m sprint double at the Olympic Games Rio 2016. Herah can become the fourth athlete to win two Olympic gold medals in the women's 100m, after Wyomia Tyus (USA, 1964 and 1968), Gail Devers (USA, 1992 and 1996) and Fraser-Pryce (2008 and 2012).

In each of the past five Olympic Games, the gold medal winning time was faster than in the previous Games. Herah's 10.71s at Rio 2016 was the second-fastest gold medal winning time in history, after Florence Griffith Joyner's (USA) 10.54s in 1988.

Dina Asher Smith can win Great Britain's third Olympic medal in the women's 100m, and the first since silver by Dorothy Hyman in 1960. The most recent British woman to win athletics gold in an individual event at the Olympic Games was Jessica Ennis Hill in the heptathlon at London 2012.

Other contenders:-

No country has won as many medals in this event as the United States (18, G9-S7-B2). US athletes have won silver at each of the past two Olympic Games: Carmelita Jeter in 2012 and Torie Bowie in 2016.

Marie-Josee Ta Lou (Ivory Coast) can become the first woman to win an athletics medal for Cote d'Ivoire at the Olympic Games.

Blessing Okagbare can win Nigeria its first Olympic medal in this event. After claiming bronze in the women's long jump at Beijing 2008, Okagbare could become the third Nigerian woman to win multiple Olympic medals in athletics, after Mary Onyali (G0-S0-B2) and Falilat Ogunkoya (G0-S1-B1).

India's Dutee Chand will also compete in the women's 100m dash at the Tokyo Olympics. Dutee, who didn't reach the semifinals at the 2016 Rio Olympics, won a silver medal at the 100m in 2018 Asian games in Jakarta.

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