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Foster-Hylton comes of age
Hartley Anderson
Sunday, January 17, 2010
CONGRATULATIONS are in order for Usain Bolt and Brigitte Foster-Hylton for copping the 49th RJR Sports Foundation's Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year Awards at the Pegasus Hotel on Thursday evening.
Bolt's victory was a cinch after repeating his Beijing exploits a year later in Berlin, and in even more notable fashion with world record runs in the men's sprint events.
There must have been, however, some serious deliberations by the selection committee to arrive at the female winner, with Shelly Ann Fraser and Melaine Walker having also ticked off gold medal-winning performances at the World Athletic Championships.
In fact, both Fraser and Walker had more than authentic claims to the award after winning their respective events in national record times in Germany, while simultaneously, like Bolt, repeating as global champions in consecutive years.
It would have been a mite disappointing for Fraser, in particular, who ended the Berlin meet with two gold medals, having teamed up with Simone Facey, Aileen Bailey and Kerron Stewart to capture the women's sprint relay title as well.
At age 22, Fraser achieved what no other local female athlete has by winning back-to-back global finals in the 100m event, and in the process clocking 10.73 seconds to break Merlene Ottey's distinguished mark of 10.74 that had stood for some two decades.
By so doing, Fraser proved that she is indeed a 'big occasion' performer and, in this regard, could pass on invaluable lessons to fan favourite, MVP club-mate and close friend Asafa Powell.
But if nothing else, Thursday evening's final results unearthed two critical realities: first, that Foster-Hylton was always the sentimental favourite, having finally broken through at a global meet after promising so much for so long, and secondly, that like the proverbial 'good wine', she appears to be mellowing with age.
At 34, Foster-Hylton is clearly at the top of her game, thus lending credence to the notion that the sport is indeed a learning curve.
Having conquered the psychological barrier in Berlin, the petite St Bess native with the disarming smile subsequently exhaled by reeling off a string of seven straight victories in the 100m hurdles -- including at the World Athletic Final -- to end the season as the undisputed queen of her event.
And while the ardent fan is acutely aware of the unpredictable nature of sport, even the most passionate and optimistic among us would not have envisaged such a remarkable turnaround from Foster-Hylton in Berlin after basically calling it quits after a disappointing display in Beijing a year earlier.
Credit must therefore be given to coach Stephen Francis whose responsibility it would have been to motivate the athlete and convince her that she still had what it took to be a champion.
Like Deon Hemmings' victory in 1996 in Atlanta and Walker's Berlin triumph, Foster-Hylton's victory in Germany was seminal as no Jamaican had previously won that event at those specific global meets.
That all three athletes are hurdlers further underlines the depth and variety of the track and field programme in Jamaica, for which all stakeholders should take a bow.
Again, that Jamaica is enjoying this 'embarrassment of riches' in the sport of athletics is an enviable one that is accepted by even the most patriotic and arrogant of Americans.
Just last week, many-time gold medallist at the World and Olympic levels, Maurice Greene, gave Bolt his deserved props by asserting that track and field's poster boy can become the 'ultimate sprinter'.
Additionally, like Michael Johnson contended last year during a visit to the island, Greene believes Bolt can break the 400m world record if and when he decides to tackle what is admittedly one of track and field's toughest events.
Greene, who was in the island for yesterday's sixth staging of the Douglas Forrest Invitational Meet at the National Stadium, also declared that Jamaica's dominance in world sprinting should continue for at least the next five years.
If that is so, there are exciting times ahead indeed.
Hartley Anderson
Sunday, January 17, 2010
CONGRATULATIONS are in order for Usain Bolt and Brigitte Foster-Hylton for copping the 49th RJR Sports Foundation's Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year Awards at the Pegasus Hotel on Thursday evening.
Bolt's victory was a cinch after repeating his Beijing exploits a year later in Berlin, and in even more notable fashion with world record runs in the men's sprint events.
There must have been, however, some serious deliberations by the selection committee to arrive at the female winner, with Shelly Ann Fraser and Melaine Walker having also ticked off gold medal-winning performances at the World Athletic Championships.
In fact, both Fraser and Walker had more than authentic claims to the award after winning their respective events in national record times in Germany, while simultaneously, like Bolt, repeating as global champions in consecutive years.
It would have been a mite disappointing for Fraser, in particular, who ended the Berlin meet with two gold medals, having teamed up with Simone Facey, Aileen Bailey and Kerron Stewart to capture the women's sprint relay title as well.
At age 22, Fraser achieved what no other local female athlete has by winning back-to-back global finals in the 100m event, and in the process clocking 10.73 seconds to break Merlene Ottey's distinguished mark of 10.74 that had stood for some two decades.
By so doing, Fraser proved that she is indeed a 'big occasion' performer and, in this regard, could pass on invaluable lessons to fan favourite, MVP club-mate and close friend Asafa Powell.
But if nothing else, Thursday evening's final results unearthed two critical realities: first, that Foster-Hylton was always the sentimental favourite, having finally broken through at a global meet after promising so much for so long, and secondly, that like the proverbial 'good wine', she appears to be mellowing with age.
At 34, Foster-Hylton is clearly at the top of her game, thus lending credence to the notion that the sport is indeed a learning curve.
Having conquered the psychological barrier in Berlin, the petite St Bess native with the disarming smile subsequently exhaled by reeling off a string of seven straight victories in the 100m hurdles -- including at the World Athletic Final -- to end the season as the undisputed queen of her event.
And while the ardent fan is acutely aware of the unpredictable nature of sport, even the most passionate and optimistic among us would not have envisaged such a remarkable turnaround from Foster-Hylton in Berlin after basically calling it quits after a disappointing display in Beijing a year earlier.
Credit must therefore be given to coach Stephen Francis whose responsibility it would have been to motivate the athlete and convince her that she still had what it took to be a champion.
Like Deon Hemmings' victory in 1996 in Atlanta and Walker's Berlin triumph, Foster-Hylton's victory in Germany was seminal as no Jamaican had previously won that event at those specific global meets.
That all three athletes are hurdlers further underlines the depth and variety of the track and field programme in Jamaica, for which all stakeholders should take a bow.
Again, that Jamaica is enjoying this 'embarrassment of riches' in the sport of athletics is an enviable one that is accepted by even the most patriotic and arrogant of Americans.
Just last week, many-time gold medallist at the World and Olympic levels, Maurice Greene, gave Bolt his deserved props by asserting that track and field's poster boy can become the 'ultimate sprinter'.
Additionally, like Michael Johnson contended last year during a visit to the island, Greene believes Bolt can break the 400m world record if and when he decides to tackle what is admittedly one of track and field's toughest events.
Greene, who was in the island for yesterday's sixth staging of the Douglas Forrest Invitational Meet at the National Stadium, also declared that Jamaica's dominance in world sprinting should continue for at least the next five years.
If that is so, there are exciting times ahead indeed.
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