In a surprising showcase of Jamaican excellence, the Doha leg of the 2024 Jetour Diamond League become a vibrant Caribbean carnival as Tia and Tina Clayton etched their names in historical past with a stunning one-two end within the ladies’s 100 meters on Friday.
Their explosive efficiency was the crown jewel in an evening that additionally noticed Rasheed Broadbell and Shanieka Ricketts ship emphatic victories, whereas Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce reminded the world that greatness by no means fades.
Clayton twins create magic
Tia Clayton was untouchable on the monitor, roaring to victory with a world-leading 10.92 seconds—a commanding show that eclipsed the ten.98-second mark set earlier within the season by American Anavia Battle. Her twin sister Tina wasn’t far behind, clocking 11.02 seconds to finish a uncommon and electrifying sibling sweep in Diamond League historical past.
But, regardless of the worldwide acclaim, Tia was self-critical, pinpointing her begin as the one blemish on an in any other case stellar run.
“I made the world-leading mark, however actually, I didn’t do the absolute best,” she admitted. “I didn’t do it as a result of I couldn’t do the beginning I at all times get, however aside from that, it was an awesome race for me.”
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The feat marked Tia’s fifth profession sub-11 clocking and underscored her rising dominance within the occasion. However what made the second actually particular was sharing the rostrum together with her twin—coaching associate, competitor, and now silver medalist.
“It is rather particular for me and my twin sister to complete first and second on this occasion tonight. I wouldn’t say that I used to be nervous, however I simply wanted to get it collectively,” Tia mirrored.
Tina, who posted a brand new season’s finest, echoed her sister’s combined feelings—happy however not fairly glad.
“I believe I executed the race a bit poorly however I can’t complain,” she mentioned. “I’ve to be glad about this consequence as a result of it’s nonetheless the start of the season, and it’s a season finest for me.”
Nonetheless, the magnitude of their shared achievement wasn’t misplaced on her.
“To be second simply behind my sister Tia is a superb feeling. We’re twin sisters, we’re coaching companions, and we additionally compete collectively. Once we line up for a race, we’re not sisters, we’re rival rivals, however after the race is over, it feels actually good to make the highest two locations.”
Fraser-Pryce finds her footing
Simply off the rostrum, dash legend Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce positioned fourth in 11.05 seconds, marking a powerful season’s debut. Regardless of lacking out on a top-three end, the five-time world champion radiated positivity.
“It had been some time since I competed constantly,” Fraser-Pryce mentioned. “I’m glad that I completed fourth… It’s a lengthy season, so we simply proceed to work and hope for the perfect. As a mom, I’ve to stability between being a mother and an athlete and being current at completely different moments if you’re required to be… And I actually simply benefit from the second.”
Nice Britain’s Amy Hunt clocked a private finest 11.03 seconds to edge Fraser-Pryce for third.
Broadbell blazes to hurdles win
On the lads’s facet, Rasheed Broadbell continued his regular ascent within the 110m hurdles, storming to a season-best 13.14 seconds to dismiss the sector. After a slower begin, Broadbell surged forward by the seventh hurdle, beating American Jamal Britt (13.25) and Spain’s Enrique Llopis (13.27) with authority.
“My purpose is to be sooner and sooner in each race,” Broadbell defined. “I got here out okay, so I pushed it. I felt some stress, and I used to be telling myself that I ought to simply loosen up… I relaxed, I got here first to cross the road, and once I noticed my mark I mentioned, ‘Oh, okay.’”
The Olympic bronze medalist has his eyes on extra than simply quick occasions.
“I might have received with a sooner time,e however I’m good with it anyway… This season I’m gonna run sooner, I believe, and I’m not nervous.”
Ricketts guidelines the triple leap
In the meantime, Shanieka Ricketts soared to victory within the ladies’s triple leap, opening with a powerful 14.30m earlier than launching a season-best 14.72m to fend off Olympic champion Thea LaFond of Dominica (14.39m). France’s Ilionis Guillaume claimed third with a wind-aided 14.20m.
Ricketts attributed her success to a mindset shift—calm, joyful, and centered.
“[I’m in the] finest frame of mind of my profession,” she mentioned. “I’m at some extent wherein I’m simply having fun with the game. Tonight was actually good. I acquired a lot assist from the gang; I used that vitality they gave me as a way to really feel good.”
She added: “It’s an inside factor for me to be actually centered on the competitors. I’m a really relaxed individual. Each season I purpose to be on the high of the rostrum and this yr shall be no completely different. It’s fairly sizzling right here on the Jetour Doha Diamond League but it surely’s reasonably sizzling in Jamaica, too, so being right here makes me really feel like residence!”
Different Jamaican outcomes
Whereas the marquee occasions belonged to the Jamaican victors, different nationwide athletes battled fiercely. Romaine Beckford positioned fifth within the males’s excessive leap with a clearance of two.20m—matched by Vernon Turner, who completed fourth. Raymond Richards was ninth at 2.15m. Fedrick Dacres took seventh within the discus with 64.71m, Adelle Tracey completed eleventh within the ladies’s 1500m (4:11.76 minutes), and Malik James-King stumbled to eighth within the males’s 400m hurdles after hitting a barrier and falling to the bottom, earlier than jogging throughout the end line in 1:03.09 minutes.
An evening to recollect
From the sprints to the jumps and over the hurdles, the Doha Diamond League was a celebration of Jamaica’s athletic prowess. With the Clayton twins taking heart stage and veterans like Ricketts and Broadbell cementing their dominance, the island nation despatched a transparent message: the highway to World Championships glory in Tokyo runs via Kingston.
