Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce is not going anywhere. Not yet, at least.
That message was clear following the screening of her new documentary, Winning Against Time, in the Lower East Side of Manhattan on Wednesday night (July 9). The entire event, replete with photos from throughout her career, a reception and more, was presented by Nike. Fraser-Pryce is a brand partner.
The film, which begins with the athlete detailing her first memory, which was of her running in her hometown of Waterhouse in Kingston, Jamaica, chronicles the last year of the track legend’s career, offering a look at her family life, her love of wearing colored hair, and her determination. It also showcases her delicate dance of balancing training and injury rehab with her goal to make it back to the Olympics in Paris to compete in the 100-meter race. We know that she wouldn’t make it to the final race, for reasons, at the time last summer, that weren’t revealed but left the sports world puzzled and her fans, especially in Jamaica, reeling.
“It’s easy to show up in those moments of winning, but it’s difficult to show up in the moments when we can’t figure it out. And we don’t know what’s the next step, or we don’t know what’s gonna happen. But guess what, what’s gonna happen is we’re gonna figure it out together, and ultimately, that’s what we did in this year,” she told Jemele Hill during a Q&A following the screening about choosing to share that challenging experience.
“I think it’s important to show that wins look different in different seasons, and this was a season of wins, even though it was a hard season. It was still a season of wins because I had to show up in spite of,” she added. “I had to chase the dream that ultimately I wanted, even if in that space, and in that moment, it looked difficult.”
The film captures not only her being blocked from entering the Olympic stadium alongside Sha’Carri Richardson before the final, as widely reported last summer, but also why she didn’t get to run for gold. It was an injury in her hamstring, a hamstring that had already suffered a strain within the year (she also battled a nagging knee pain as she competed for her place in Paris), that ended her Olympics early and left her devastated.
“I departed from Paris as quickly as I came,” she said, following her decision not to race. “I kid you, not because in that moment, it was hard because I dug myself out of a hole to get to that point. It took a lot of sacrifice, a lot of patience, a lot of work. And you get to the point and you’re at the actual event, and you didn’t get to compete. It was hard.”
She added, “Sure, I have dealt with injuries and injuries, you know what it is, and you try to fix it. You see the doctor. But in that moment, you’re not prepared for that. Nobody could tell me that I would dig myself out of a hole, I would get to Paris, I would run the heats, I would feel good, and I would get to that moment and first, I’d be stuck outside and have to walk all the way around to get back, and then one moment would just change everything.”
To cope with the disappointment, she leaned on her family, including her adorable son, Zion, and her husband, Jason, whom she calls “Jiggy.”
“I had to rely on my tribe. I really had to zone in on my faith. What is my purpose? Why am I here? What am I doing? What do I want my legacy to be? Do I quit here? Do I walk away? What do I do? I had to take time for myself, and I had to be at peace with my decision to say, you know, this was necessary. I had to go through this,” she shared.
And while her home is Jamaica, where in the film, Fraser-Pryce says she grew up, went to school, went to college, started a family, and created a foundation, Pocket Rocket Foundation, to uplift student athletes, she actually retreated to New York to figure out her next step.
“We came to New York and I took literally three months, just nothing but resting. The last time I took three months off, I was pregnant,” she said. “But this was three months to kind of really just sit with myself to think about what’s next. What do I do for me, and make that decision solely for me—it can’t be about anybody else. And that was the moment I said, I’m going to Tokyo.”
Tokyo is where the World Athletics Championships will take place this September. Fraser-Pryce has taken the title in the 100 meters five times, the only sprinter to do it, last capturing gold in 2022 before coming in third in 2023. She qualified for the Worlds in June. And despite nearing 40, she’s not doubting her ability to go far in Tokyo, and hasn’t necessarily closed the door on the possibility of returning to the Olympics in LA in 2028 (though she’s said she graced the National Stadium in Kingston for qualifiers for the final time). Fans would undoubtedly love to see her lace up her Nike spikes and continue.
“It’s not about me. It’s about the young girl who believes because of me. It’s the young girl in my community who sees me and goes ‘Shelly! I want to be like you.’ That’s what makes me feel great,” she says. “Those are the things that drive me because I never had that growing up. I never saw somebody I would say, ‘Oh, I want to be like that person!’ Yeah, I just never had that. So, for me, that’s my win. That’s what I’m able to give to the next generation, and if they think I’m great, I’m grateful for that, and I’m humbled. For me, it’s them, why I do what I do.”
As we rose to our feet, giving her the standing ovation she’ll always deserve following the conversation, Fraser-Pryce received her flowers while also making clear, you haven’t seen the last of her:
“See you in Tokyo!”