2020-tokyo-olympics-jamaican-sprinter-brutal-mistake-costs-medal

2020 Tokyo Olympics: Jamaican Sprinter Makes Brutal Mistake That Costs Her a Medal

The 2020 Tokyo Olympics have been full of record-breaking highs and devastating lows. Unfortunately for Jamaican Sprinter Shericka Jackson, one of her runs became one of the lows. The sprinter didn’t qualify for the 200m Olympic semi-finals by four one-thousandths of a second.

Jackson took home the bronze in the 100m final last week, completing a Jamaican sweep of the medals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. But today, Jackson eased up too much at the last bit of the race, and Portugal’s Lorene Bazolo and Italy’s Dalia Kaddari overtook her.

Many questioned her decision to slow down during the final leg, though it’s clear that this is not what Jackson wanted. One commentator for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Steve Cram, who is a silver medalist from the 1984 games, was particularly dumbfounded by the move.

“Shericka Jackson was almost just jogging around – what on earth? Why take such risks?” he said. “I’m sorry to sound exasperated but I am, on her behalf, on her coach’s behalf and her teammates. It’s just not necessary.”

You can watch the final leg of the race here:

Shericka Jackson Could Have Made History at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics

Shericka Jackson could have become the only person ever to compete in the 1,2 and 400-meter races. But unfortunately, this mistake cost her that chance. Fans on Twitter have discussed the move. Likely, Jackson was caught off guard by how closely people followed behind her.

Many are frustrated with what happened, but nobody could be more frustrated or devastated than Jackson herself. Some hope fans let up a bit so she can come back from this stronger.

“Sometimes painful things can teach us a lesson that we didn’t think we needed to know,” Jackson wrote in a recent Instagram post about the race.

Fans and viewers of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics were quite gracious toward Jackson on her Instagram.

“You have served your country from Championships to Olympics. We will need you in the relays. Shake it off girl,” one supporter said.

“You have nothing to be ashamed of. Things happen. Just be ready to bring home the gold in the relay,” another person wrote.

In the Olympics, one mistake can cost you big time. With the pressure of an international audience, many athletes say it can be hard not to crack. Hopefully, it’ll serve as a learning experience, and Jackson can come back even stronger.

This may be a low point, but there’s much more of the games to come. Track and Field Just started at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. If you’d like to tune in to the games, NBC is the channel to turn to. But not all is lost if you’ve dropped your cable plan. You can also catch the Olympics on NBCOlympics.com, the NBC Sports app, or NBC’s streaming service, Peacock.