~JAMAICA, MY HOME~ *OLYMPICS*

I think its nice that five of the eight finalists were Jamaican by birth or descent. Hottt I rep my country to the max of course...obviously im from Jamaica...My mother chinese Jamaican. My Father full blown Jamaican....So now my daughter is american.jamaican.trini.chinses (trini because of her father) a little of everything..lol
.... dont you just hate stupid people who say things that they dont have a clue about i lost count of how many stupid questions people use to ask me about Jamaicans when i was younger..like elll why do you guys eat goat? or why yall chicken green?.....smhh but then again If there are no stupid questions, then what kind of questions do stupid people ask? Do they get smart just in time to ask questions? I mean...come on....stupid people make me mad...just think logical please u feel me... being a smartie or a genius ain't anything more than elegant common sense!!!!! but i guess common sense aint so common...Is it safe to say I not only use all the brains that I have but all that I can borrow...well I think its safe and real shit! Wisdom begins at the end....It took me awhile to understand things and to speak my mind....i never use to do that and people assume that i had no sense in my head...its funny how people or FAMILY think they know you or think less of you until you open your mouth and utter one word! smhh When I look life in the face...which i turned away from for a number of years it told me the truth and for this fair exchange was my youth.......somebody told me that the only true wisdom is knowing you know nothing at all...I laughed. Read this artical below...enjoy the pics..keep post god bless!!!



Asafa Powell, until recently the World's Fastest Man, isn't even the fastest man on his island now. That's what happens when you're a Jamaican sprinter: No matter how fast you are, there's some kid running uphill in the Blue Mountains, training on the spectacular beaches, hungry to replace you as the next national hero.

Usain Bolt, 21 and six-foot-five, last month ran 100 meters in 9.72 seconds, breaking Powell's world record of 9.74 set in September 2007. Powell and Bolt hold seven of the 10 fastest recognized times over 100 meters. This weekend, they go head-to-head for the first time at that distance at the Jamaican Olympic Track and Field Trials in Kingston. It promises to be a sizzling showdown, one that has drawn media-credential requests from England, the United States, Japan, Italy, France, and all over the Caribbean.

It's almost as if the Beijing Olympic organizers should cancel the 100-meter men's final, pay for the United States' Tyson Gay to fly to Jamaica and award the Olympic gold medal there this weekend.

Powell added a spark to the race when he said on Sunday: ``Bolt is my main rival. It's great how all the Caribbean runners are doing -- Darrel Brown and Marc Burns of Trinidad, and Usain Bolt. Tyson Gay is the only person outside the Caribbean who can challenge us right now.''

TRADITION

Jamaica, with a population of fewer than 3 million, has produced a remarkable number of Olympic track medals -- seven golds, 24 silvers, 19 bronzes. In the 100-meter final at the 1984 Olympics, five of the eight finalists were Jamaican by birth or descent.

The Jamaican medalist list reads like a track-and-field Who's Who: Arthur Wint; Herbert McKenley; Lennox Miller; Donald Quarrie; George Rhoden; Merlene Ottey; Sanya Richards and Veronica Campbell-Brown, who recently ran the world's fastest time in the women's 100 meters.

Then there's Donovan Bailey and Ben Johnson, who were born in Jamaica but raced for Canada. And Linford Christie, who left Jamaica for England at age 7.

''We have a tremendous sprinting tradition, dating back 100 years, and kids who grow up here develop a deep passion for the sport,'' said Bolt's coach, Glen Mills. ``Soccer is probably our most popular sport, but track and field is right behind it, and from an international achievement standpoint, it's No. 1. I'd guess we win more Olympic track medals per capita than any other country.''

`WILD ATMOSPHERE'

Jamaica's success in the sport is no accident. It is the product of a well-oiled national track federation that begins to groom sprinters from the time they are in elementary school. Children as young as 6 compete in relay races and mini-Olympics.

Surely, there is no high school track meet in the world as competitive as CHAMPS, the Jamaican interscholastic championship, founded in 1910. More than 2,000 athletes compete in the annual spring event, and it attracts a sellout crowd of 35,000. Coaches from most of the top U.S. colleges show up to recruit.

''It's a wild atmosphere at CHAMPS,'' said Davian Clarke, a former University of Miami runner and Olympian from Jamaica. ``For three days the stadium is packed, standing room only.''

In 1911, the 100-yards CHAMPS winner was a young man named Norman Manley, who won the race in 10 seconds. He also won at 220 yards in 23 seconds, which would have been good enough to have made the finals in the 1908 and 1912 Olympics. But Manley chose not to pursue track. Instead, he became a Rhodes Scholar and a statesman. The Kingston airport is named after him.

EARLY MEDALS

The tradition continued, and Jamaica got the world's attention in the late 1940s. In 1948 and 1952, while still a British colony, Jamaica won three Olympic gold medals and five silvers in track and field.

The Jamaican 4x400 relay team in 1952 not only won, but shattered the world record by 4.3 seconds. McKenley ran the third leg in 44.6 seconds, still one of the fastest legs of all time.

They celebrated in their dorm room that night by drinking whiskey out of a toothbrush tumbler with the Duke of Edinburgh, according to Olympic historian David Wallechinsky. The next day was declared a national holiday in Jamaica, and fans celebrated in the streets.

Jamaican track champions are still revered on the island. When Bolt flew back after breaking the world record, he was met at the airport by a throng of screaming fans and TV crews. The prime minister was on hand, too.

IDEAL CONDITIONS

Jamaica's young sprinters also are celebrated every year at the Penn Relays in Philadelphia, which the Jamaican team has dominated since the 1960s.

The top Jamaican high-school and amateur runners show up at the meet every year and fans fly up from Jamaica to wave black, gold, and green flags from the stands.

''In our country, the top athletes typically leave track early and go to football or basketball, but in Jamaica, they stick with track and become huge stars,'' said UM track and field coach Mike Ward. ``. . . They take their track seriously.''

Clark said Jamaica's terrain makes it the perfect training ground for sprinters. Kids run barefoot on the beaches of Bull Bay to strengthen their legs and then train in the mountains to work on endurance.

Many of the best sprinters train on grass tracks, which are not as hard on the knees and legs.

''We don't need fancy weight rooms or expensive tracks,'' Clark said. ``The goal of every kid I knew in Jamaica was to become an Olympic track champion. We love our cricket and soccer, but there is something very special about Jamaican track and field. I think there are six high-school kids there now who ran [the 100 meters] in 10-flat last year. I can't imagine that's happening anywhere else in the world.''