JOA presses for Tayna Lawrence Olympic gold after Commonwealth relay upgrade

As the Jamaica Olympic Association (JOA) readies its programme for the next Commonwealth Games and the Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games, President Christopher Samuda is also pressing for Jamaican athletes to receive medals they are owed after rivals were sanctioned.

At the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games, Jamaica’s women’s 4x100m quartet — Kemba Nelson, Natalliah Whyte, Remona Burchell and Elaine Thompson-Herah — originally took bronze. That placing has since been raised to silver after Nigeria, who crossed first, were stripped of gold when Grace Nwokocha was banned for an anti-doping offence. England moved up to gold and Australia to bronze.

Samuda welcomed Commonwealth Sport’s ruling, stressing that hard-earned performances should be matched with the correct podium places.

“I believe that when an athlete commits time, energy, and resources, and compromises other opportunities that that athlete may have, they deserve a medal and our athletes deserve to be recognised,” the JOA president said.

“This is something that we had indicated from early in terms of the women’s 4x100m at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games. It didn’t take a lot of convincing because [Commonwealth Sport] is palpably aware that that must take place.”

He added that the Birmingham relay squad is not Jamaica’s only outstanding medal claim, citing retired sprinter Tayna Lawrence.

Lawrence competed for Jamaica at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and was initially third in the women’s 100m, behind Marion Jones of the United States and Greece’s Ekaterini Thanou in second. Jones confessed in 2007 that she had taken the title while using banned substances. Thanou was not moved into silver because of her own anti-doping breaches linked to the 2004 Olympics.

Against that backdrop, Samuda argued Lawrence should now be recognised as Olympic champion.

“In relation to Tayna Lawrence, she came third and the persons who were before her, one was stripped for an anti-doping violation and then another one fell short as well,” Samuda explained.

“We are saying Tayna must get the gold now. The crown must be hers, and so we are ensuring that our advocacy achieves that, and I’m hoping to have good news for her quite shortly.”