"They're gonna show her so much love"- Justin Gatlin gets real about Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce receiving massive farewell in Jamaica National Stadium

Former Olympic champion Justin Gatlin candidly discussed the massive farewell Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce received at the National Stadium in Kingston, Jamaica. The Jamaican sprinter appeared for the final time at the Jamaica National Stadium during the Jamaican National Trials 2025.

Gatlin talked about Fraser-Pryce's career with Bahamian athlete Rodney Green, with whom he conducts the podcast channel Ready Set Go on YouTube. The duo previously conversed with Olympic champion hurdler Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone in one of their latest podcasts.

Gatlin shared an excerpt of the conversation on his Instagram profile, with the following caption:

"Watching iconic legends like @realshellyannfp help set the tone in the women’s Sprints for almost 20 years has been amazing to witness"

During their discussion, Green mentioned the reception received by Fraser-Pryce at the Jamaican National trials, saying:

"The crowd and the send off, Shelly Ann Fraser-Pryce, they were very very receptive to her. It was good that everybody to see her, celebration for her. Everybody was able to come down, celebrate her at her last time running in their National Stadium."

Justin Gatlin nodded as he added:

"That's what it should feel like when it's time for you to retire. When you know you can get your flowers, not only from legends like Usain Bolt [who was there to see her run], but also the people who've cheered for you for years, her sponsor Nike. Going into the rest of the season, I think it's going to be the same wherever she goes, whatever meet she goes to. They're gonna show her so much love."

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce is one of the fastest female athletes of all time, with a best time of 10.6 seconds. However, she had to withdraw from the Paris Olympics last year before the semifinals of the women's 100m event due to an injury.

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Justin Gatlin reviewed Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone's season opener performance

Justin Gatlin talks about Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone's season opener [Image Source: Getty]

Justin Gatlin had once shared his views about Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone's preparations for the 2025 season. The Olympic champion hurdler's performance in the season opener at the Grand Slam Track meet in Jamaica had impressed Gatlin.

In his conversation with Rodney Green on the Ready Set Go podcast, the former Olympic champion mentioned:

“It'd be hard. It'd be very, very difficult to bet against Sydney, especially in her premiere event or any other event that she steps into. Because Sydney is the kind of person, like she's just not going to throw herself into a competition. She's going to do her research. She's going to train for it," he said.

In another conversation with Green, Gatlin revealed his thoughts on McLaughlin-Levrone's performance in the short sprints event at the Philadelphia meet of the Grand Slam Track League.

"Sydney is once again on her reign of dominance. From the 400m hurdles to now dropping to 49 in the open 400m, she's handling business, bro... Anything Sydney gets into, she steps on that line. She is not coming half-cocked. She is coming to compete like an elite athlete of that discipline. When she did the 200m, I was like whoa!! Alright, she's ready," he said on the Ready Set Go podcast via Instagram.

Justin Gatlin won the men's 100m gold medal at the Athens Olympics in 2004. No other American sprinter managed to repeat the feat until the Paris Olympics in 2024, when Noah Lyles edged out Kishane Thompson in an intense 100m final to end the gold medal drought for the USA after two decades.