“Age is a part of life, a part of the journey, but it doesn’t define who you are.” Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce said that three years ago, with gold around her neck, after blazing through the 100m final at the World Championships in Oregon, at the age of 34. It was more than a win. It was a message. And now, at 38, that message still rings as loud as ever. The Jamaican sprint legend is back, lining up for another season and debuting in the Diamond League, where her journey after motherhood began: Doha.
You’d think by now, people would stop asking if she’s “too old to race.” But they haven’t. And that’s exactly why Shelly’s return to the track carries more weight than just split times.
“Memories of 2019. Yeah, 2019 was really special for me. I would like to think of Doha as a place of, you know, defying the odds, because I had my son in 2017, so I was coming back from having my son.” She said to Wanda Diamond League.
Because the truth is—once women hit 30, and especially after becoming mothers, people tend to count them out. Fraser-Pryce knows that feeling well.“And 2019, being able to cross that line after having my son, you know, after turning 30, where a lot of persons think that when women turn 30, then put on top of that having a child, you know, they kind of just put you in a box. But being able to have that moment in Doha, and not only that moment, but the moment of having my son on the track was really special.
The moment she crossed that finish line in Doha wasn’t just about winning gold. It was about rewriting what’s possible. And then came the real victory: cradling her two-year-old son Zyon on the track, under the floodlights.
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