Jamaican sprinting star Tia Clayton recently expressed her excitement about making the Olympic team! The nineteen-year-old stated, “I am feeling very great that I made the team, and all that I can do now is to stay mentally focused and healthy and just continue to do my best at all times and aim to win a medal at the Olympic Games.” In the semifinals, she outran Jackson by a wide margin, clocking sub-11-second times. This performance secured her spot on the Jamaican Olympic team, where she hopes to excel in the 100m and bring home medals for her country.

However, Clayton’s aspirations have recently sparked a fierce debate within the track and field community. Instead of support, her bold ambition to win 100m gold in Paris has been met with harsh criticism, with many labeling her dreams as “delusional”. This backlash indeed highlights the intense scrutiny and pressure faced by athletes as they chase their Olympic dreams.

Tia Clayton poised to win the Olympics? 

In a recent tweet by @Marskull_, they made a bold prediction about Clayton’s performance at the 2024 Olympic games. They wrote, “Tia Clayton – 100m Olympic Champion”. Though at first glance, we can dismiss the tweet, a deeper look into Clayton’s track record proves that the claims may not be unfounded. During the 100m sprint at the Jamaican Senior National Athletics Championships, she came second with a time of 10.90s. This was a personal best and a significantly faster time than her previous pb of 11.23s. Additionally, in the semis, she ran with a time of 10.86s. 

Clayton is ranked the fastest Jamaican runner, and she is the fifth worldwide. Even in the Gustav István Memorial meet, she came second behind America’s Tamari Davis, who had a time of 11.00. However, she won the 60m event with a time of 7.22s, beating her twin Tina who had 7.27s. This year at the Olympics, she will face off against Sha’Carri Richardson, who is the reigning world champion with a time of 10.71s. Looking at the stats, it is safe to say that though a first-place finish cannot be predicted, a podium finish is definitely likely. However, the tweet has been received with mixed reactions. 

Track and field fans are skeptical about the 100m claim

Tia Clayton has been consistently dropping podium finishes throughout the Olympic cycle. However, there isn’t any breakthrough performance that can prove she’s going to win. Fans took to the comment section of the tweet to say just this. One fan outright called the tweeter out for making incorrect predictions. Clayton is arguably not as well-known a name as, say, Sha’Carri Richardson, who is the current favorite to win the category. They dismissed the claims, writing, “Delusional”.

Another fan also echoed this sentiment. Although they don’t want to say straight away that Clayton does not have what it takes to win, but in a roundabout way they expressed their lack of confidence, saying, “nope. It’s cool to be delusional just know when she doesn’t even make the final ima be laughing at the delusion”.

However, one track and field fan stood beside the prediction. They expressed that they are not rubbishing the claim. This is because Tia Clayton has had back-to-back performances during this Olympic cycle, so the chances of her continuing this level of performance is quite high. They wrote, “No baggage, it can happen for her”.

Another fan expressed how, given her records and scores this Olympic cycle, she’s having a good run. Though she might not win this year, Clayton can definitely keep aiming for gold in the next Olympics. If she continues training and performing the way she is, it can be a few great upcoming years for her. They wrote, “Not this year but I can see it if she continues”.

Lastly, a fan seemed totally sold that Tia Clayton may just bring the Olympic gold medal home to Jamaica. Apparently the fan has also been labeled delusional for thinking so, but they’re glad that more people are seeing Clayton’s brilliance. They expressed their confidence, saying, “I said the same thing to someone who said I’m delusional. She isn’t a favorite but she will go there and run her own race, and possibly win.”