‘No tit for tat’ - Fraser-Pryce speaks of harmony in MVP Track Club, unconcerned about Blake-Bolt feud
Published:Tuesday | December 17, 2019 | 12:00 AMDaniel Wheeler/Gleaner Writer
While the conversation over the last week has been the reaction to Yohan Blake’s claim that Usain Bolt’s success has “overshadowed” his own accomplishments on the track, multiple Olympic and World champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce says that there is no ill will from within the MVP Track Club with regard to competition among her fellow training partners.
The 32-year-old was speaking at the final of the Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce Six-a-Side Football League on Sunday at the Foska Oval off Spanish Town Road in St Andrew. The seventh staging of the event was a part of her “Peace Through Sport” initiative which seeks to promote peace and unity within the Waterhouse community where she grew up.
She said that though there is a natural competitive atmosphere at MVP Track Club, which is home to reigning Olympic 100m champion Elaine Thompson-Herah, it is more of a healthy nature which pushes fellow members to excel at the highest level.
“For me, there is no tit for tat,” Fraser-Pryce told The Gleaner. “I am a professional and I am an adult and a mother. For me, the focus is about training. Everybody is competitive. It’s athletics.”
Fraser-Pryce says that it is the desire for success among the athletes that has resulted in everyone pushing each other to perform when the occasion comes.
Competitive spirit
“Everybody wants to win and we believe in working hard and showing up and giving everything on the track and I think that is what makes us better. So you have that competitive spirit because you’ll need it for competition. So no tit for tat, it’s all love in MVP,” she said.
In interviews with the Times of India and Outlook India earlier this month, Blake said it was unfortunate that he came along at the same time as his former Racers Track Club training partner, Usain Bolt.
“If you take Bolt away from the picture, I will be the fastest man in the world. I was born at the wrong time,” he said. Blake said that he regrets not being able to face off more against Bolt when he emerged as Bolt’s main threat in 2012.
Fraser-Pryce said that she did not read Blake’s interview but says that the resulting backlash over social media is of no concern to her, as she has other issues within athletics to focus on.
“To be honest, I did not read the interview,” she said. “I saw the thing on social media and I don’t have the time for those things. Because I believe there is so much more is going on in athletics.
“We can focus on the other things that are going on and for me and I am so tied up with things at the moment. I don’t get caught up in the stuff that doesn’t not concern Shelly-Ann.”
She said that she is looking forward to the 2020 season which will culminate in her final Olympic Games in Tokyo in July. Confirming that she will be competing in both the 100m and 200m, Fraser-Pryce said that she is ready for the challenge ahead.
“I’m really looking forward to putting in the work, just to have fun and continue to cement my name in history and continue to inspire a lot of athletes and just individuals along the way,” she said.