10.83 seconds—that’s all it took for Tia Clayton to snatch her first Diamond League victory in Silesia. In a heart-pounding 100-meter showdown, she squared off with Cote D’Ivoire’s Marie-Josee Ta Lou Smith, giving fans that edge-of-your-seat photo finish. Right behind them, America’s Tamari Davis clocked in at 10.84 seconds to round out the podium. Pretty intense, right? The three of them were the fastest off the block, with the rest of the track fading away in the distance. However, the Jamaican’s season had yet another first for her!

The 20-year-old Jamaican sprint sensation also made her Olympic debut at the Paris Games. You could feel her excitement beforehand when she said, “All that I can do now is stay mentally focused and healthy and just continue to do my best at all times and win a medal at the Olympic Games.” No pressure, right? Just the small task of representing your entire nation on the world’s biggest stage.

With legends like Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Shericka Jackson bowing out early, all eyes were on Tia to bring home some hardware. She gave it her all, competing in both the 100m and the 4x100m finals. But, despite her best efforts, the podium eluded her this time around. Did she let it get her down? Not a chance. Tia stepped into the Silesian Stadium with a fresh fire in her belly, ready to take on a stacked lineup that included the likes of Daryll Neita, Tamari Davis, and Marie-Josee Ta Lou Smith.

After narrowly edging out Ta-Lou Smith by a razor-thin margin of one-thousandth of a second, the 20-year-old shared her mindset leading up to the race. “Going into this race, I just wanted to try my best, without any specific expectations. After the Olympics, I trained even harder than before,” she said. She wasn’t about to head home without a medal, though: “I did not go back home, staying in Italy.”

But is this the last we’ll see of her? Not according to Tia Clayton. “I am still in great shape and I intend to race a couple more times before the season is over.” Her 2024 track season has been quite stellar, with two personal bests, one of which she recently reset at the Silesia Diamond League on August 25. “Again, I do not have specific expectations, I simply want to run as well as I can.” It looks like her sentiment still remains the same as before she made her way to the French capital.

Tia Clayton’s uphill battle at the Paris Olympics

In track and field, Jamaica’s legacy is legendary, but this time, the spotlight was on just one sprinter in the Olympic 100m finals for the first time since 1966. With stars like Elaine Thompson-Herah, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, and Shericka Jackson absent, the weight of national pride fell squarely on Tia Clayton’s shoulders.

Though Shashalee Forbes took the spotlight during the semis, she didn’t make it to the final race. Clayton finished the semis with an impressive 10.89 seconds, the third fastest time, but couldn’t match that pace in the final, coming in seventh with 11.04 seconds. Despite this, she earned respect from fans, including Sha’Carri Richardson, who praised her on Instagram, writing, “Tia Clayton, to be the youngest & the only one representing a country is an achievement in itself & congratulations.”

Tia faced a similar fate in the 4x100m relay, where Jamaica finished fifth with a time of 42.29 seconds. Still, she remained positive about her performance at Stade de France, saying, “Well, I feel very great. I just came out here and did my best. It wasn’t what I wanted, but I’m grateful. How could you have run it better?”

With her performance in Paris behind her, Tia is already on track to redeem herself. What did you think of Tia Clayton’s drive at the Silesia Diamond League? Share your thoughts in the comments below!