Despite being in the transitioning phase of athletics and going with no Usain Bolt, Jamaica finished in Doha with their 2nd biggest medal haul in World Championships history with 12 medals!(Compared to 13 in 2009 and 2015)
Imagine we didn’t get medals expected from Elaine Thompson and Omar McLeoud too!
However, we had our biggest showing ever in Field events. Spectacular performances by our athletes.
Suga votes the Women’s 4×100m Gold as our sweetest victory in Doha.
Jamaica’s 4×100m Women Final team after winning Gold at World Championships, Doha 2019
I think every Jamaican would agree that we could watch that race over and over again. So, here you go!
Watch “Jamaica Wins Women’s 4x100m Gold | World Athletics Championships 2019 | Doha Moments” on YouTube by clicking on the link here:
https://youtu.be/gcq_Qo_lBDw
Jamaica also medalled in the Mixed 4×400m relay, the Women’s 4×400m and the men had an impressive 2nd place finish in the Men’s 4×400m relay. Suga sees our 400m male athletes on the rise, especially in our young, Akeem Bloomfield. What a first leg!
Jamaican Men’s 4×400m team who won Silver at Doha 2019.
I am so proud of our athletes, their determination and their perseverance. Congratulations to Team Jamaica on this huge accomplishment and their success!
Looking forward to Tokyo 2020! We’ll even be represented in Gymnastics with Danusia Francis!
By: Gabrielle Burgess
If you liked this Blog, follow Suga Lifestyle Online, on Instagram (@sugalifestyle), Twitter (@sugalifestyleja) or like the Suga Lifestyle Facebook page.
The World Championships in London are now over but there are so many moments to reflect on. The meet was filled with surprises, disappointments, upsets, drama and triumphs.
Thanks to everyone who enjoyed tuning in to Suga Lifestyle’s updates on Facebook and the Website.
Here are Suga’s 17 Memorable Moments from World Champs London 2017:
1. USAIN BOLT loses his last 100m individual race, getting the Bronze but JUSTIN GATLIN WINS!
2. MOHAMED FARAH aka Mobot of Great Britain wins Gold in the Men’s 10000m! He was going for his 5th double before retirement but fell short, getting the Silver in the 5000m. He will remain a Legend of the sport and a video tribute was played for him.
4. OMAR McLEOD wins Gold for Jamaica in the Men’s 110m Hurdles after a disappointing show for Jamaica in the Men’s and Women’s 100m.
5. RIO Olympic Champ, Kenya’s FAITH KIPYEGON won the Women’s 1500m with Genzebe Dibaba nowhere in sight and another favourite, Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands finished 5th.
Caster Simenya of South Africa, who entered the event for the first time, took the Bronze.
Photo: Vavel
6. YULIMAR ROJAS of Venezuela won the Women’s Triple Jump in an exciting jump off versus the RIO Olympic Champion and her rival, Caterine Ibarguen of Colombia.
Photo: hindustantimes.com
7. PHYLLIS FRANCIS of the USA won the Women’s 400m in her PB, as Shaunae Miller-Uibo of the Bahamas tightened, failing to medal and her compatriot and favourite to win, Allyson Felix faded on the stretch.
Photo: IAAF Athletics
8. Jamaica’s DANNIEL THOMAS-DODD was in the Bronze medal position of the Women’s Shot Put before the last throw, but ended up finishing 4th. Great achievement for Jamaica.
9. Jamaica’s RISTANANNA TRACEY won the Bronze medal in the Women’s 4×400m Hurdles in her PB!
10. The animated, KARSTEN WARHOLM of Norway won Gold in the Men’s 400m Hurdles upsetting USA’s Kerron Clement.
12. RAMIL GULIYEV of Turkey who has been in the game for a while, not only finally got on the podium, but won Gold in the Men’s 200m. He prevented South Africa’s Wayde Van Niekerk from winning the 400m-200m double. Van Niekerk got the Silver. Trinidad and Tobago’s Jereem Richards finished with the Bronze.
Photo: thetelegraph.co.uk
13. SALLY PEARSON (past Olympic and World Champion) at 30 years old, had a fairytale ending, winning Gold in the Women’s 100m Hurdles after suffering from 2 years of injuries.
Photo: www.heraldsun.com.au
14.  GREAT BRITAIN Men’s 4×100m team struck Gold as their anchor leg runner, Mitchell-Blake passed USA’s Christian Coleman before the line and Usain Bolt of Jamaica pulled up shortly after receiving the baton. They achieved the win in European record time.
Photo: telegraph.co.ukPhoto: telegraph.co.uk
15. USAIN BOLT’s 4×100m teammates gathered around him after an agonizing fall to the ground from pulling up on the final leg. The race was run about 15 minutes after the scheduled time and the athletes were all ready waiting in the cold as IAAF did Mo Farah’s tribute and medal ceremonies. This could have been the reason for Bolt cramping or injuring himself.
It was hard for everyone to watch the Champ and Legend go out like that for his final race. He still wanted to finish the race and they all helped him hop to the finish line.
16. TRINIDAD and TOBAGO’s (T&T’s) 4×400m Men’s team upset the USA and won Gold! Lalonde Gordon of T&T swept past Fred Kerley of the USA on the final stretch in the last lap of the relay. Brilliant run.
Photo: The Trinidad Guardian
17. USAIN BOLT was given a send off at the end of the Championships, where a packed stadium stayed to give thanks to him for doing so much for the sport.
He was given a gift from IAAF, a part of the track from which he created history in Olympics London 2012.
Usain bolt did not want to end his career on a bad note, but remember Muhammad Ali lost his last fight. He was not all smiles, but you could see the different emotions he felt as he held back tears at one point while walking his last lap around the track. He took a bow at his last competitive Track & Field event.
Photo: standard.co.ukUsain Bolt strikes his famous, To Di worl’ pose (Photo: stuff.co.nz)
THANKS USAIN! You will remain a Legend forever in not only Athletics but Sports in general.
WE WILL MISS YOU!
By: Gabrielle Burgess
If you liked this blog, follow Suga Lifestyle or like the Suga Lifestyle Facebook page.
Sorry Jamaica but we don’t have a chance of a medal in this event. No Jamaicans have made the Final.
Defending Champ, Danielle Williams, our biggest chance, just hit almost every hurdle and finished 5th, pressured by Christina Manning of the USA beside her. She apparently lost focus.
Other qualifiers are no surprises as predicted by Suga. Talay has not done well this season but always seems to sneak her way into the Final. She flipped the script and is a dark horse.
Is Kendra Harrison officially a choker? It seems so. She hit the first hurdle and it was downhill from there, fighting to finish 3rd in her Semi. She qualified as a fastest loser, knocking out our Yanique Thompson who finished 3rd in Danielle’s Semi.
Little Megan Simmonds did her best, finishing 4th but was in a heated Semi led by Sally Pearson.
The SUMMARY
Sally Pearson may be able to create the upset for GOLD if Kendra doesn’t get her head right Suga Bears! Sally is looking really good and solid.
Sally Pearson (Photo – IAAF)
By: Gabrielle Burgess
If you liked this blog, follow Suga Lifestyle or like the Suga Lifestyle Facebook page.
We have 3 Jamaicans in the Semis but I believe only Simone Facey has a chance of advancing to the Final.
This is another very competitive event, even with Torie Bowie out of it. The ladies to look out for are Dafne Schippers and Marie Josee Ta Lou. If Shaunae Miller-Uibo didn’t injure herself in the 400m Final and her legs still have the energy, she is likely to come back with determination since she missed out on the podium for the 400m. She has the fastest time of the season (21.91) amongst who is left, since Bowie who had a SB of 21.77 is out.
I won’t even attempt to make any predictions as to the placement on the podium based on how things have been going in London. Note however, that even though Dafne Schippers has a SB of 22.10, she has a PB of 21.63 and does not like to lose. She is an extremely sore loser. I see her grasping at the opportunity for Gold with Bowie and her rival, Elaine out of the 200m.
On the other hand, Ta Lou is such a free spirit with nothing to lose and everything to gain. She reminds me of our Pocket Rocket, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce.
Who can spoil the party?
The American, Deajah Stevens.
Can’t wait for the Semis and the Final tomorrow at 3:50pm!
Women’s 400m Hurdles Final
This Final is another toss up as the Americans including the RIO Olympic champ, Dalilah Muhammad, may be out of shape. Defending World Champ, Zuzana Hejnová of Czech Republic has been looking good though.
Look out for our Ristananna Tracey. Can she get another Bronze for Jamaica? We need it.
Here is the line up!
Men’s 200m Final
This race is stacked! It’s anybody’s game. Wayde Van Niekerk looked tired in the Semis, struggling to finish 3rd and qualified as a fastest loser, but he didn’t look impressive in the 400m Semis either. I won’t be counting him out. Hoping for good weather!
From what I know so far, Makwala will be running out of Lane 6 and Van Niekerk will be running out of Lane 3.
The Schedule for the rest of the Championships!
I’m not expecting any medals for Jamaica from the Women’s 100m Hurdles but I am hoping with the Relays we can come home with at least 5 medals.
The RELAYS
It is too early to tell but we all know with Relays anything can happen. Team USA and others are in better shape than Team Jamaica in terms of speed, but we are hoping that our athletes put out their best and also execute smooth baton exchanges! Expecting a good performance from our 4×400m Women!
Good luck Jamaica! Stay tuned!
By: Gabrielle Burgess
If you liked this article, follow Suga Lifestyle or like the Suga Lifestyle Facebook page.
As predicted by Suga, Mohamed Farah won the 10000m! He is on his way to his 5th DOUBLE! CONGRATS MO! All things being well with a stomach bug going around, he will run in the Men’s 5000m. The Heats start today at 2:05pm.
Men’s 200m SemiFinal
We have Rasheed Dwyer and Yohan Blake left to compete, but it is doubtful that Dwyer will advance to the Final from Lane 9 in the Semis.
Blake is our only hope for a medal but don’t be surprised if he doesn’t make the podium. I believe he is facing a mental battle everytime he reaches or approaches top speed as a result of his recent injury that was very severe. It is unlikely he will release the beast ever again. We cannot blame him though because suffering an injury a 2nd time that was more severe than the first will have him running on the edge with a fear that it could put him out for a long time again with no guarantee of return. We wish him well.
There is currently a lot of controversy surrounding Botswana’s Isaac Makwala being out of the 400m. It is said that he was seen vomiting before the 200m Heats, hence why he did not enter. But he says he felt better and was in good condition to run the 400m Final. He was staying at a hotel where the norovirus swept through and he was suspected to have it because he was seen vomiting. In order to avoid the risk of contaminating other athletes, Makwala was denied entry to the London stadium, also due to a British Public Health order of proclamation. Makwala wasn’t even tested for the norovirus or seen medically so he was not a happy camper.
Makwala made this facebook post:
Despite all the controversy, the show must go on. World Record holder, Wayde Van Niekerk of South Africa won the 400m easily and is going for the double in the 200m. He has the fastest time of 19.84 for the season.
To contest him, other than our Yohan Blake, we should look out for his compatriot, Akani Simbine, Jereem Richards of Trinidad and Tobago, Great Britain’s Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake and Isiah Young of the USA.
The Frenchman, Christophe Lemaitre is still in it. He may have done his time finally achieving Bronze at the Olympics after many attempts, but he always does his best.
The Final is tomorrow at 3:52pm.
Men’s 400m Hurdles Final
Jamaica has Kemar Mowatt running out of Lane 3. We don’t expect a medal from him but we welcome pleasant surprises.
All eyes will be on RIO Olympic champ, Kerron Clement of the USA to see if anyone challenges him for the Gold.
Women’s 400m Final
The USA thinks Allyson Felix finally has this one in the bag and has scrutinized or accused Shaunae Miller-Uibo of the Bahamas for ‘diving’ across the line to win Gold in RIO.
Can Shaunae make it look like her win was clean at RIO Olympics 2016 and upset Felix?
We have 3 Jamaicans in the Final who are well known to us – Shericka Jackson, Novlene Williams-Mills and Stephenie Ann McPherson. Depending on their strategy and focus, you cannot count them out for a bronze. However, USA’s Phyllis Francis has been running well and may stand in their way. So too is Salwa Naser of Bahrain, originally from Nigeria.
Here is the line up!
Tomorrow’s Schedule:
Stay tuned to Suga Lifestyle!
By: Gabrielle Burgess
If you liked this article, follow Suga Lifestyle or like the Suga Lifestyle Facebook page.
