Kishane Thompson Explained

Kishane Thompson
Sport:	Athletics
Event:	Sprint
Birth Date:	17 July 2001
Birth Place:	Mitchell Town, Jamaica
Height:	1.85 m^[1]
Pb:	100 m: 9.77 s (2024)

Kishane Thompson (born 17 July 2001) is a Jamaican track and field athlete who competes as a sprinter.^[2] He won the silver medal at the 2024 Summer Olympics in the 100 metres event.

Career

A member of the MVP Track Club, Thompson competed at the Jamaican Championships in June 2023, and ran 9.91 seconds for the 100 metres in his qualifying heat.^[3] However, he pulled-out of the competition prior to the semi-final. This was pre-planned, his coach Stephen Francis explained that due to a number of injuries in previous years he had a schedule to avoid multiple-round running that year.^[4]

Thompson made his Diamond League debut competing in the 100 metres in Monaco on 21 July 2023, running 10.04 seconds to finish fifth.^[5] In September 2023, he lowered his 100 metres personal best to 9.85 seconds to finish second at the Diamond League event in Xiamen, China.^{[6] [7]} At his last Diamond league match he ran 9.87 seconds to finish fourth in Eugene,USA.

On 27 June 2024, he ran 9.82 seconds for the 100 metres in the opening round at the Jamaican Olympic trials in Kingston, Jamaica.^[8] In the subsequent final, he ran a new personal best of 9.77 seconds to win the Jamaican national title.^[9]

At the 2024 Summer Olympics, Thompson won silver behind Noah Lyles. Thompson and Lyles finished with the exact same time of 9.79 seconds, with Lyles ultimately awarded the gold medal by a margin of five-thousandths of a second after a photo finish.^[10]

The close finish led to a heated debate among sports enthusiasts and analysts. Many argued that the race was a "dead heat" and that the gold medal should have been shared between the two athletes since their times were identical. The confusion was further amplified when notable sports broadcasters, including NBC, initially reported that Thompson had won the race.^{[11] [12]}

Track records

As of 8 September 2024, Thompson holds the following track records for 100 metres.

Location	Time	Wind (m/s)	Date	Notes
	9.79	+1.0	04/08/2024	Track record is shared with Noah Lyles (USA) from the same race and Usain Bolt (JAM) from 17/07/2009.
	9.99	+0.9	30/07/2023

Notes and References

1. Web site: THOMPSON Kishane . . 22 September 2024 .
2. Web site: Kishane THOMPSON - Athlete Profile. World Athletics. 22 July 2023.
3. Web site: Kishane Thompson upsets in 100m heat, Yohan Blake disqualified. Jamaica.Loopnews. 22 July 2023. Melton . Williams. 6 July 2023.
4. Web site: One fast race was always the plan for Kishane Thompson - Stephen Francis. Sportsmax.tv. 22 July 2023. Leighton. Levy . 9 July 2023.
5. Web site: 100m results Monaco Diamond League 21 July 2023. Watch-Athletics. 22 July 2023. 21 July 2023.
6. Web site: Results: Xiamen Diamond League 2023. Watch Athletics. 2 September 2023. 2 September 2023.
7. Web site: Christian Coleman steals 100m with 9.83 WL at Xiamen Wanda Diamond League. 2 September 2023. World-Track. Susan. Moore. 2 September 2023.
8. Web site: Kishane Thompson Drops 9.82 Stunner, Fraser-Pryce and Jackson Shine, Set for Epic 100m Showdown at Jamaica Olympic Trials. 28 June 2024. Janielle. Whitfield . Track Alerts. 27 June 2024.
9. Web site: Thompson sets world-leading mark to win Jamaican 100m. Reuters. 29 June 2024. 29 June 2024. Raynor. Kayon.
10. Web site: Kishane Thompson relishes silver after being on wrong end of Olympic 100-meter photo finish. AP News. Graham. Pat. 4 August 2024. 16 November 2024.
11. Web site: Baer . Jack . 4 August 2024 . NBC's Leigh Diffey admits fault after erroneously calling Kishane Thompson as 100-meter winner over Noah Lyles. 5 August 2024 . Yahoo Sport . en-GB.
12. Web site: 5 August 2024 . La finale olimpica dei 100 metri più equilibrata e competitiva di sempre . 5 August 2024 . . it.