Fraser-Pryce walked back, her head and shoulder held high.
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American Tori Bowie clocked 10.83 seconds to steal silver while Fraser-Pryce finished a disappointing third in 10.86 seconds, to miss out on her quest to become the first ever woman to win a hat trick of Olympic 100m titles.
Defending champion Ennis-Hill, who returned to Olympic action after having a baby, said she also had a decision to make.
Jamaica is once again the home to the Fastest Woman in the World, extending America’s drought in this Olympic event it once owned to 20 years, and counting.
Jessica Ennis-Hill also failed in her bid to defend her heptathlon title, pipped to gold by 21-year-old Belgian student Nafissatou Thiam, who said she had only dreamt of a top-eight finish prior to the event. And Tori Bowie, the American running right beside her, who has the speed to run her down, as well. (Though Marion Jones won in 2000, she was later stripped of her medal after confessing to doping violations.) The sight of Florence Griffith-Joyner’s name flashing up on the Olympic Stadium scoreboard because her astonishing 1988 world record of 10.49 in the 100 still stands was another reminder of just how much things have changed.
“Oh yeah, she’s watching – and she’s probably crying right now”, Bowie said with a smile.
Despite the pain, she is not about to quit on Jamaica now and will put herself through it once again for the love of Jamaica.
Fraser-Pryce, her flowing hair dyed the Jamaican colors of yellow and green, looked sharp in the semifinal round, though, logging a time of 10.88, tied with Thompson for the fastest qualifying time.
“I am very excited, I’m very happy because Jamaica has so many talented sprinters and to be the second champion, as long as it remains Jamaica I am very happy”, Thompson said afterward. Francis did most of the talking.
After struggling with injury in 2016, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce was relieved just to make the start line for the 100 metre final in Rio.
Fraser-Pryce, who has been bothered by a toe injury all season, says she will end her season after the Olympics and seek advice on how to treat the problem but noted that surgery is a very likely outcome.
“Considering how the season went and everything I was going through I was just excited to be there”. “It’s a journey, and as an athlete, many times you will be 60 per cent and sometimes 100 per cent and tonight (Saturday night) I’m happy with everything and all the glory goes to God. I’m happy we get to keep the gold medal”, Fraser-Pryce explained.
Fraser-Pryce was third in the 100m final won by her good friend and training partner, Elaine Thompson, in convincing fashion.
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Dutch star, Dafne Schippers, second behind Fraser-Pryce at the 2015 World Championships, finished fifth in 10.90. But he brilliantly recovered to get back in the race, hunting down the leaders and powering to gold.
