Just short of 100

JAMAICA’S HISTORY at the Olympic Games includes 88 medals.

President of the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association, Garth Gayle, would love nothing more than to get to that magical figure of 100, however, predictions suggest that he may have a wait on his hands.

“While I am not in the habit of predicting medal tallies, I must highlight a significant milestone on the horizon. We are just 12 medals away from reaching 100 in our Olympic history,” Gayle wrote in a message to the athletes on yesterday’s opening day.

At the last Olympic Games in Tokyo, the nation’s athletes walked away with nine medals, consisting of four gold, one silver, and four bronze.

The country’s best performance, in terms of quality, came at the 2016 Rio Olympics, where 11 medals were garnered: six gold, three silver, and two bronze.

Jamaica has grabbed more medals, though, notching 13 in 2012 at the London Games: four gold, five silver, and four bronze.

This time around, there are questions surrounding some of the top athletes that could affect the final medal tally at the end of the championships.

Those questions suggest that there will be 10 medals in Paris: two gold, one silver and seven bronze.

The country’s two gold medals are expected from sprinter Kishane Thompson and quarter-miler Nickisha Pryce.

Thompson has been in tremendous form, winning the national championships 100 metres in a personal best of 9.77 seconds.

Boasting the fastest time in the world this year, Thompson is one of two athletes to dip under 9.8 this season. Ferdinand Omanyala of Kenya has gone 9.79 but at high altitude.

Thompson showed at the national championships that he could have gone faster, but after 70 metres, the powerfully built athlete shut it down.

The expected challenges come from world champion Noah Lyles of the United States, who has a best of 9.81, and countryman Oblique Seville, with a best of 9.82.

Pryce has been having a dream season, improving by almost two seconds in the 400 metres.

In her first Diamond League appearance in London, she showed class in turning back World Championships silver medallist Natalia Kaczmarek of Poland, winning in a new national record, 48.57. Pryce was breaking her own national record of 48.89 seconds.

A very deceptive runner, who can change gear at any time, her clash with world champion Marileidy Paulino of the Dominican Republic should be one of the highlights of the Games. Pryce seems to be able to go faster, and Paulino will have to improve on her personal best, 48.76, to deny the Jamaican.

Jamaica’s lone silver medal is expected in the women’s 4x100-metre relay despite concerns surrounding top female sprinters Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Shericka Jackson. The United States will start favourite for gold here, but Jamaica should get the better of world leaders Great Britain (41.55 seconds). Seville looks good for a bronze medal in the 100 metres behind Thompson and Lyles, improving on his fourth-place finishes at the Eugene and Budapest World Championships.

Ackera Nugent in the women’s 100 metres hurdles, Rushell Clayton in the women’s 400 metres hurdles, Carey McLeod in the men’s long jump, and Jaydon Hibbert in the men’s triple jump are the other individual bronze medals expected by the Jamaicans.

The other two bronze medals are expected to come from the men’s 4x100 and women’s 4x400m relays.

Should Jackson and Fraser-Pryce prove healthy enough to perform close to their best, Jamaica could rack up a further three medals and move to 13.

Interestingly, that would take Jamaica to 101 Olympic Games medals.