JAMAICAN 16-YEAR-OLD WHO SMASHED USAIN BOLT'S RECORD NOT BEING AT OLYMPICS SPEAKS VOLUMES

Jamaica's depth of sprinting talent is summed up by the Olympics snub of 16-year-old sensation Nickecoy Bramwell.

The teenager made headlines around the world earlier this year when he broke Usain Bolt's under-17 400m world record at the Carifta Games in Grenada. Bolt's time of 47.33 seconds hadn't been beaten since 2002.

But Bramwell topped it by seven-hundredths of a second, stopping the clock at 47.26. While he looks destined for greatness, he'll have to wait at least another four years for his Olympics debut.

For 400m, Jamaica have instead selected Sean Bailey, 27, Jevaughn Powell, 23 and Deandre Watkin, 21 - who have personal bests of 44.43, 45.35 and 44.48 respectively. None are expected to be in medal contention, though, with Team GB's Matthew Hudson-Smith the favourite to clinch gold.

Like Bolt, Bramwell also sprints over 100m and 200m. Again, Jamaica have a deep pool of options before he'd come into consideration, despite his youth achievements.

And they are expected to dominate in the 100m, with Kishane Thompson the fastest man over that distance this year. He ran a PB of 9.77 in June. Team-mate Oblique Seville will also fancy his chances, achieving his PB of 9.82 earlier in 2024 too.

Ackeem Blake rounds out their 100m soloists, with Jehlani Gordon set to join them in the 4x100m relay. Antonio Watson would've likely made the cut had he not been struck by injury.

For 200m, Jamaica have Andrew Hudson and Bryan Levell going for them. Bramwell will almost certainly claim one of their sprint spot in Los Angeles in 2028 if he carries on his superb form.

Bolt has admitted himself that after his retirement in 2017, their male prospects diminished. “After me, it kind of went down because of who I was as a person, and how big my personality was," he previously said.

“But I think over time it will be better. I think young athletes are coming up and I see a few personalities that are needed in sport, hopefully in the upcoming years it will change.”

2024-08-04T05:00:47Z dg43tfdfdgfd