Kerron Stewart (born 16 April 1984) is a retired Jamaican sprinter who specialized in the100 metres and200 metres.[1] She is the 2008Jamaican national champion in the 100 m clocking 10.80s. She defeatedWorld ChampionVeronica Campbell-Brown in the process and now is the2008 Summer Olympics silver medalist after she tied withSherone Simpson in a time of 10.98s. She also earned a bronze medal in the200 metres at the2008 Summer Olympics with a time of 22.00s. She was born inKingston and retired after the 2018 season.[2]
Stewart holds one of the fastest non-winning times for the women's 100 metres. In the 2009 World Athletics Championships from Berlin, she ran 10.75 seconds only to finish second to compatriot,Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce who ran a 10.73 race. Stewart also anchored the Jamaican4 × 100 m relay team to victory in a time of 42.06.
Stewart attendedSt. Jago High School.[3] She won the U18 100 m at the2000 Carifta Games.[4] She also represented Jamaica at the World Junior Championships that year, winning a silver medal in the 4 × 100 m relay.[4] In 2001, she finished second in the 200 m at the World Youth Games. In the following year, she finished fourth in the 100 m at the World Junior Championships, and second at the U20 100 m at the2002 Carifta Games.[4] After winning the U20 100 m, and coming third in the U20 200 m at the2003 Carifta Games, she was selected for the 2003 Pan American Games, but injured herself in the athlete's village by walking through a plate glass window in the dark, forcing her out of action for three months.[4]
Recovering, she was selected as an alternate for the Jamaican 2004 Olympic team, but did not get to race.[4]
Stewart first competed in theNJCAA forEssex County College and then transferred toAuburn University.[3] She ran for theAuburn Tigers track and field team under coachHenry Rolle at NCCA division I level. She was named 2007 SEC Runner of the Year and USTFCCCA National Runner of the Year after capturing the SEC and NCAA Championships in the 60 m and the 200 m. She was named All-American for seven times and one of the best athlete in the school's history. In 2007, she won theHonda Sports Award as the nation's best female collegiate track and field athlete.[5][6]
At the2008 Summer Olympics inBeijing she competed at the 100 metres sprint. In her first round heat she placed first in front ofEzinne Okparaebo andLaVerne Jones-Ferrette in a time of 11.28 to advance to the second round. There she improved her time to 10.98 seconds to win her heat in front ofLauryn Williams andKim Gevaert. With 11.05 seconds in her semi final she won the race and earned her spot in the Olympic final. In a remarkable race with fellow JamaicanShelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce taking the gold, Stewart andSherone Simpson both finished in 10.98 seconds to share the silver medal and to complete the Jamaican sweep.[1] Together with Fraser, Simpson,Sheri-Ann Brooks,Aleen Bailey andVeronica Campbell-Brown she also took part in the4 × 100 metres relay. In their first round heat (without Simpson and Stewart) they placed first in front ofRussia,Germany andChina. Their time of 42.24 seconds was the first time overall out of sixteen participating nations. With this result they qualified for the final in which they replaced Brooks and Bailey with Simpson and Stewart. Eventually they did not finish their race due to a mistake in the baton exchange.[1]
Stewart came second in the 100 m at the 2009 Jamaican national championships, finishing in 10.93 s and qualifying for the2009 World Championships.
At the 2009IAAF Golden Gala, Stewart won a gold medal in the Women's 100 m in front of Olympic ChampionShelly-Ann Fraser, with a time of 10.75s, which tied the meet record. This was the fastest time in ten years recorded by a woman in the event, and the third-fastest time ever recorded by a Jamaican, shy ofMerlene Ottey's 10.74s andShelly-Ann Fraser's 10.73 national record.[7]
At the2009 World Championships Kerron Stewart won a silver medal in 100 m just two hundredths of a second behind Jamaican teammateShelly-Ann Fraser equalling her personal best of 10.75 seconds and ensuring a Jamaican one-two. Stewart did not compete in the200 m due to an ankle injury, but was anchor for the Jamaican quartet that took gold in the 4 × 100 m Relay.[citation needed]
Having moved back to Jamaica in 2013 to train under new coach Glenn Mills and help to coach the next generation of Jamaican sprinting talent, she competed at the2014 Commonwealth Games, winning a bronze medal in the 100 m and a gold medal in the 4 × 100 m (with Veronica Campbell-Brown,Schillonie Calvert and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce) in a games record time.[8]
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Representing Jamaica | |||||
| 2000 | World Junior Championships | Santiago,Chile | 2nd | 4 × 100 m relay | 44.05 |
| 2001 | World Youth Championships | Debrecen,Hungary | 2nd | 100 m | 11.72(wind: +0.5 m/s) |
| 2nd | Medley relay | 2:07.45 | |||
| 2002 | World Junior Championships | Kingston,Jamaica | 4th | 100 m | 11.53(wind: -0.2 m/s) |
| 1st | 4 × 100 m relay | 43.40 | |||
| 2nd (h)[9] | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:32.20 | |||
| 2004 | NACAC U-23 Championships | Sherbrooke,Canada | 2nd | 100 m | 11.40(wind: +0.0 m/s) |
| 5th | 200 m | 25.18(wind: -4.0 m/s) | |||
| 1st | 4 × 100 m relay | 43.62 | |||
| 2007 | World Championships | Osaka,Japan | 7th | 100 m | 11.12(wind: -0.2 m/s) |
| 2nd | 4 × 100 m relay | 42.01 | |||
| 2008 | 2008 Summer Olympics | Beijing,China | 2nd | 100 m | 10.98(wind: +0.0 m/s) |
| 3rd | 200 m | 22.00(wind: +0.6 m/s) | |||
| 2009 | World Championships | Berlin,Germany | 2nd | 100 m | 10.75(wind: +0.1 m/s) |
| 2012 | Summer Olympics | London,Great Britain | 2nd | 4 × 100 m | 41.41 |
| 2013 | World Championships | Moscow,Russia | 5th | 100 m | 10.97(wind: -0.3 m/s) |
| 2014 | Commonwealth Games | Glasgow,Scotland | 3rd | 100 m | 11.07 |
| 1st | 4 × 100 m relay | 41.83 | |||
| 2015 | NACAC Championships | San José,Costa Rica | 4th | 200 m | 22.80(wind: +1.3 m/s) |
| World Championships | Beijing, China | 1st | 4 × 100 m relay | 41.84 (only heats) | |
|
Commonwealth Games champions in women's4 × 100 metres relay | |
|---|---|
| 4 × 110 yards (1954–1966) | |
| 4 × 100 metres (1970–present) |
|
World U20 Champions in women's4 × 100 metres relay | |
|---|---|
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