'I didn't give up on myself'- Kishane Thompson reflects on injury

Kishane Thompson shared his ongoing struggles with injuries but emphasized his resilience and determination to never give up, despite missing major competitions and facing setbacks since starting his career in 2016.

Olympic 100m silver medallist Kishane Thompson has explained why one should never give up on their dreams despite suffering numerous setbacks.

Injuries have taken a toll on Thompson for most of his budding career, forcing him to miss a lot of major competitions and opportunities to compete on the global stage like any other athlete. The talented Jamaican sprinter started his professional career in 2019 but had to wait until 2024 to get a chance to represent Jamaica at a huge event, the Paris Olympic Games.

In 2022, Kishane Thompson missed the opportunity to compete at the World Championships in Eugene as he raced sparingly and ended his season in May. Last season, he had expectations to race at the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary but only competed in the heats of the Jamaican trials, where he finished first but did not show up for the final.

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He then competed in three Diamond League Meetings, Monaco, Xiamen and the final in Eugene where he finished fifth, second and fourth respectively. He was off to a great start this season, winning the Jamaican Olympic trials in a world-leading time of 9.77 seconds and then proceeded to win the Gyulai István Memorial, a Hungarian Athletics Grand Prix.

At the Olympic Games, he finished second in the men’s 100m final and that was his final individual race of the season after injuries locked him out of a series of Diamond League Meetings.

“Honestly, I didn’t think about doing something else. I really understood that it seemed like I was destined or I had so much great potential that it was so hard to manifest. You know but, the more that I tried, it seemed like the more held back I got so it forced me to even try harder,” Kishane Thompson told Nationwide90 FM.

“I didn’t give up on myself and did what I had to do, even doing more than I had to do. It just really kept me grounded and yeah, I’m human, I’m going to feel sad but even though I felt that way, I had to keep pushing,” he added.

As the track and field season is over, Kishane Thompson will have time to rest and nurse his injuries as he hopes for a great comeback next year.