Athletics Hero: Shelly-Ann Fraser

Full name: Shelly-Ann Fraser
Nationality: Jamaica
Gender: Female
Height: 160cm
Weight: 52kg
Date of birth: December 27, 1986
Place of berth: Waterhouse, Kingston, Jamaica
Clubs: MVP Track & Field Club

Shellly-Ann Fraser is a Jamaican sprinter, who specializes in the 100 m. Fraser attended the Wolmer's High School for Girls and represented her school in many athletic occasions. She is the reigning Olympic champion and World champion over 100 metres, clocking a time of 10.78 and 10.73 respectively. She is only the second female sprinter to hold both World and Olympic 100m titles simultaneously (after Gail Devers), and is tied with Christine Arron as the fourth fastest woman in history over 100 metres.

Fraser, who trained for the Olympics with teammate Asafa Powell, became the first Jamaican woman in history to win an Olympic gold medal in the 100 metres sprint. In her first round heat, she placed first in a time of 11.35 to advance to the second round. She then improved her time to 11.06 seconds, finishing first in her heat. In the semifinals Fraser again finished in front, outsprinting Muna Lee and Lauryn Williams in 11.00 seconds.

In the final, Fraser surprisingly clocked a personal best time of 10.78 to win the gold medal. Her time was the second-fastest 100 metres ever recorded by a Jamaican woman, a mere 0.04 seconds shy of Merlene Ottey's 10.74 record.

Together with Sheri-Ann Brooks, Aleen Bailey and Veronica Campbell-Brown, Fraser also took part in the 4×100 meters relay but the team did not finish the race due to a mistake in the baton exchange

In 2009, Fraser took the 100 m Jamaican title in June, winning with a world-leading time of 10.88 s against a strong headwind (-1.5 m/s). This made her the number one Jamaican qualifier for the 2009 World Championships. Fraser took full advantage, holding off a late surge from compatriot Kerron Stewart who had a slow start to win by two one-hundredths of a second in a time of 10.73, the fourth fastest time in the event's history and a Jamaican national record.