Thompson Herah’s former coach is credited for nurturing the Jamaican and turning her into a global force in sprints.
Former Elaine Thompson Herah’s coach Jerry Lee Holness has been named the new Athletics Federation of India (AFI) hurdles coach, a few weeks before the 2025 season begins.
Holness, who will lead Indian women’s 400m and 400m hurdles teams, has mentored Olympic and world champions Elaine Thompson-Herah and Nesta Carter, and is the reason why the pair is a success at the global stage as reported by olympics.com.
Elaine Thompson-Herah playfully dismissed rumors about her training camp switch, leaving fans speculating about her next move.
Elaine Thompson-Herah is considered one of the best women’s sprinters to grace the track in recent years and boasts six Olympic and five World Championships medals in her tally. Thompson-Herah bagged a brace in Rio. The Jamaican won the 100m and 200m Olympic gold medals at Rio 2016 and successfully defended both at Tokyo 2020.
However, she missed Paris 2024 due to injury and has returned to training ahead of the 2025 season. Thompson Herah, a former world champion in the 4x100m relay, also won gold at Tokyo 2020 in the same event.
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Carter, on the other hand, was part of the gold medal-winning Jamaican men’s 4x100m relay team from London 2012 and has been a four-time world champion in the event.
Holness, a World Athletics Level 5 certified coach who has also worked with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the Cayman Islands national teams, officially joined the National Centre of Excellence (NCoE) at the Lakshmibai National College of Physical Education (LNCPE) in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, on Monday.
The 65-year-old will oversee the training of prominent Indian quartermilers like Hima Das, Subha Venkatesan, Rupal Chaudhary, Kiran Pahal and Vithya Ramraj. His appointment precedes this year’s major athletics events like the Asian Championships, World Relays and World Championships.
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He replaces Stashuk Valerii, who previously coached the Indian women’s 400m team. Valerii’s contract was not renewed after the team’s underwhelming performance at Paris 2024.
