Friday, August 30, 2024
Tia Clayton made her best win, setting a personal record in the pounding 100-metre square down at the Diamond League on Sunday.
The 20-year-old Jamaican sprinter competed with Cote D’Ivoire’s Marie-Josee Ta Lou Smith to beat her own record by 0.3 seconds which she made prior 2 months to the Diamond League.
Marie-Josée Ta Lou-Smith of Côte d’Ivoire also recorded 10.83 seconds, but Clayton was awarded the win. Tamari Davis of the USA finished just behind in third place with a time of 10.84 seconds. Daryll Neita of Great Britain took fourth place, crossing the line in 11.01 seconds.
Clayton also made her Olympic debut at Paris 2024, contesting the 100m final against some of the fastest women in the world. Her Olympic debut gained her the seventh position with a time of completion at 11.04 seconds. But this just set the stage for the sprinter for the big win she made ahead in the Diamond League.
Clayton proudly carried on Jamaica’s legacy as this year’s spotlight surrounded her. She had already started to make headlines as the star youngster who is following in the footsteps of sprint greats Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Shericka Jackson. After making the grand win, the 20-year-old commented, “Going into this race, I just wanted to try my best without any specific expectations. After the Olympics, I trained even harder than before.”
Her big win is also an inspiration to many young girls out there. Speaking of her motivation and inspiration, athletics has been a raging legacy in the Clayton family. Clayton’s mother was a national-level runner during her primary and high school years. But her twin sister, Tina has set the record by breaking her records to make it to the Olympics. Both the sisters, Tina and Tia, have been each other’s biggest competitors on the field as well as supporters off the field. They had been trained together in their athletic careers. By 2022, Tina was a four-time U20 world champion in the 100m and 4x100m relay; the latter of which the pair ran and won together.
Clayton’s first Diamond League win is just a fresh start, and her determination of not to return empty-handed to Jamaica after her Olympics debut. She is all set and witnessing an impressive track season, recording two personal bests in a standout season.
