Fraser-Pryce wins 4th 100m title as Felix surpasses Bolt’s tally of gold

Doha: Jamaican sprint queen Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce surged to an unprecedented fourth 100m crown and US legend Allyson Felix broke Usain Bolt’s gold medal record tally as the returning new mothers lit up the World Championships in Doha on Sunday.

Fraser-Pryce and Felix, both racing in their first major championships since taking time off from the sport to have children, lit up a pulsating day three of competition even if the action was played out inside a near-empty Khalifa Stadium.

The 32-year-old Fraser-Pryce, who skipped the 2017 championships to give birth to her first child, delivered a barnstorming run to take the 100m in 10.71sec.

Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith took silver with a time of 10.83sec while Ivory Coast’s Marie-Josee Ta Lou claimed bronze in 10.90sec.

Fraser-Pryce was in control from the gun, rocketing out of the blocks and taking the lead in the opening 20 metres.

From that point there was only going to be one winner, and the veteran Jamaican swept over the line majestically to add to the world titles won in 2009, 2013 and 2015 before setting off on a victory lap carrying her two-year-old son Zyon.

The two-time Olympic champion’s dominant display was the highlight of a day three which also saw US track queen Felix win a record 12th World Championship gold medal.

Felix only returned to the sport in July after a 13-month layoff which saw her give birth to her daughter Camryn by emergency C-section last November.

The 33-year-old, who failed to qualify for the individual 400m event in Doha, took gold in the 4x400m mixed relay as the US motored to victory in a world record time of 3min 09.34sec.

Felix’s 12th gold medal broke Jamaican legend Bolt’s record tally of 11 World Championship gold medals. Overall, Felix now has an incredible 26 medals, a dazzling haul that also includes six Olympic golds. There was another victory for a returning mother in the final event of the day, the women’s 20km race walk, where China’s 2016 Olympic champion Liu Hong won gold.

Elsewhere Sunday, triple jump king Christian Taylor completed a superb hat-trick of World Championship titles after surviving near elimination in a nerve-jangling final.

The two-time Olympic champion and now four-time world champion clinched gold with a leap of 17.92m.

Agence France-Presse