Jamaica’s Five Most Influential Track and Field Couples

Pulse Sports has ranked the five most influential track and field couples in Jamaica. The ranking is based on popularity and affluence, and it includes Usain Bolt and Kasi Bennett, Elaine Thompson-Herah and Derron Herah, Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce and Jason Pryce, Veronica Campbell Brown and Omar Brown, and Asafa and Alyshia Powell.

Usain Bolt and Kasi Bennett

At the top of the list is power couple Usain Bolt and his longtime girlfriend, Kasi Bennett. As an athlete regularly described as the greatest in history, it is no surprise that Usain Bolt ranks first. The semi-retired sprint champion Usain St. Leo Bolt was born in 1986 in Sherwood Content, Jamaica. He holds the world records in the 100 meters, 200 meters, and 4×100-meter relay. He has won eight Olympic gold medals and is the only sprinter to win 100-meter and 200-meter titles at three consecutive Olympics. He first gained international fame with his double sprint victory in 2008 at the Beijing Olympics where he clocked world record times. Kasi Bennett was born in Jamaica in 1990 and was a sprint athlete in her younger days. A model, philanthropist, and social media personality, she is also the managing director of the business and marketing development agency, Elevate Marketing House. The couple has worked hard to keep their relationship as private as possible but officially announced their partnership in 2016. The couple welcomed their first child, Olympia Lightning Bolt, in May 2020, and their twin boys, Thunder and Saint Leo, in June 2021.

Elaine Thompson-Herah and Derron Herah

Second in the Pulse Sports couples ranking are Elaine Thompson-Herah and Derron Herah. Elaine Thompson-Herah is a double Olympic sprint champion. She was born in 1992 in Manchester, Jamaica, and is considered one of the greatest of all time. A five-time Olympic champion, she is the first female sprinter in history and only the second sprinter to win a sprint double at consecutive Olympics with gold medal wins in the 100 meters and 200 meters in Rio in 2016. She first came to global prominence at the 2015 World Athletics Championships where she won a silver medal in the 200 meters and became the fifth fastest woman in history over that distance at that time. She married former professional athlete and current manager, Derron Herah in 2019. Derron Herrah has been a significant influence on his wife’s track and field career. He was born in Jamaica in 1982 and featured strongly in the 400-meter and 400-meter hurdles. Since his retirement from professional sports, he has engaged in various business enterprises, including The Loan and Pawn Shop and Herah Music Productions, and is associated with the entertainment industry via HMP Entertainment.

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Jason Pryce

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce is one of the most popular and influential female athletes from Jamaica. She was born in 1986 in Kingston, Jamaica, and earned multiple accolades in the 60 meters, 100 meters, and 200 meters. She is also one of the most enduring track athletes in history with a career spanning over 15 years. With her track and field successes, she helped to create the Golden Age of Jamaican sprinting. She is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and five-time World Champion. She is the first woman from the Caribbean to win gold in the 100 meters. With her win of a silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, she became the first athlete to win a medal in the 100 meters at four consecutive Olympic Games. She married Jason Pryce in 2011 at the Tryall Club in Hanover, Jamaica, and in 2017, the couple welcomed their son, Zyon. Off the track, she is known for her philanthropic and business endeavors, including the Pocket Rocket Foundation, which supports high school athletes. She launched a hair salon, Chic Hair, in 2013. Jason Pryce is a Channel Development Manager at Datto, working with the firm for many years. He is responsible for hiring and developing Datto Partners around the world. He has a BA in Science from Central Connecticut State University. He has served on the CompTIA Board of Directors for Advancing Diversity in Technology.

Veronica Campbell-Brown and Omar Brown

Veronica Campbell-Brown was born in Clarks Town, Jamaica, in 1982, and during her track and field career she specialized in the 100 and 200 meters. She is an eight-time Olympic medalist and the second of three women to win two consecutive Olympic 200-meter events. She is also one of nine athletes in history to win World Championships at the youth, junior, and senior levels. She also won seven silver medals and one bronze medal at the World Championships in Athletics. She is a two-time champion in the 60 meters at the IAAF World Indoor Championships. Over her career, she won a total of 46 medals:  27 gold, 16 silver, 3 bronze. The sprint champion married fellow Jamaican sprinter Omar Brown in 2007. Omar Brown was born in Trelawny, Jamaica, in 1982, and specialized in the 200 meters. He competed for the University of Arkansas and won the 200-meter event at the 2006 Commonwealth Games. He was ranked ninth in the world in that event in 2006. Injuries prevented him from competing in several following seasons, but he came back in 2009 to take fourth place in the 200 meters at the Shanghai Golden Grand Prix. The couple have a daughter, Avianna, who was born in 2019.

Asafa Powell and Alyshia Powell

Asafa Powell was born in 1982 in Linstead, Jamaica. During his outstanding sprint career, he specialized in the 100 meters and set the world record twice for the distance between June 2005 and May 2008. He has broken the 10-second barrier in competition in the 100 meters consistently and holds the world record for the 100-yard dash at 9.09 seconds. He became an Olympic champion in the 4×100-meter event in 2016 and competed in the 100-meter event at the Olympics in 2004, 2008, and 2012. He has won at the IAAF World Athletics Final five times and was the former 100-meter world record holder at that distance. He married Ghanaian-Canadian model Alyshia Powell in 2019. She was born in Accra, Ghana, in 1993 to a Canadian father and a Ghanaian mother. The family moved to Canada when she was 10, and she finished her education and pursued an athletic career there, running in the 400-meter sprint and relays. While she began her career as an athlete, she switched to modeling after being discovered in 2012. She is represented by some of the top modeling agencies in the world. The couple has two children, Amieke and Azhaf Powell, and Asafa Powell has two children from previous relationships, Avani and Liam Powell. Asafa Powell is good friends with fellow sprint champion Usain Bolt, and they often meet at the track. Powell retired from track and field in November 2022.

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