Olympic champion Roje Stona and silver medallist Shanieka Ricketts were crowned RJRGleaner National Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year on Friday night at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel.
The accolades were widely anticipated following their stellar performances at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
Stona, a Clemson University graduate, delivered a surprise win for Jamaica in the men’s discus at a packed Stade de France on August 7, setting a new Olympic record of 70.00m. This surpassed Lithuania’s Mykolas Alekna, who had improved the previous mark of 69.89m—set by his father, Virgilijus, in 2004—with a second-round effort of 69.97m.
The victory marked Jamaica’s first gold medal at the Paris Olympics and their first-ever Olympic medal in the men’s discus. In a unique twist, Stona and his coach, Ryan Crouser, both secured athletics gold medals in Paris, with Crouser clinching his third consecutive shot put title just days earlier.
Stona’s historic performance also earned him the People’s Choice Award. The decision was made through a public vote, with Stona emerging victorious over Rasheed Broadbell’s bronze in the 110m hurdles at the Paris Olympics, Ackera Nugent’s world-leading 12.24-second run in the Diamond League, Khadijah Shaw’s goal against Liverpool in the Women’s Super League, Kishane Thompson’s 100m silver at the Paris Olympics, and Chavany Willis’ stunning goal for Arnett Gardens against Portmore United in the Jamaica Premier League.
Kishane Thompson, who ran 9.79 seconds and narrowly missed the men’s 100m gold medal by just five-thousandths of a second to Noah Lyles of the USA in a thrilling race at the Paris Olympics, was the runner-up for the Sportsman of the Year title.
The 23-year-old has emerged as a frontrunner for Olympic gold after his world-leading and personal best time of 9.77 seconds at the Jamaican Olympic trials in late June. That performance followed times of 9.82 seconds in the heats and 9.84 seconds in the semifinals, placing Thompson joint ninth on the world all-time list.
Stona and Thompson were among eight male nominees, all track and field athletes, vying for the Sportsman of the Year title.
Other contenders included Ackeem Blake, who won bronze in the 60m at the World Indoor Championships; Rasheed Broadbell, a bronze medallist in the 110m hurdles at the Paris Olympics; and Rajindra Campbell, who claimed shot put bronze in Paris. Also nominated were Rusheen McDonald, who earned 400m bronze at the World Indoor Championships; Carey McLeod, a long jump bronze medallist at the World Indoor Championships; and Wayne Pinnock, who took Olympic silver in the long jump.
Ricketts, a 32-year-old two-time world silver medallist, delivered a season-best performance of 14.87m (-0.7m/s) in the women’s triple jump at the Paris Olympics to win silver, securing her spot on the Olympic podium for the first time.
Ricketts briefly held the lead, but Yulimar Rojas, the dominaacnt force in the event since 2017, was unable to defend her title due to an Achilles tendon injury. This opened the door for Thea LaFond of Dominica to seize gold with a national record jump of 15.02m in the second round, marking her country’s first-ever Olympic medal.
Rushell Clayton, a finalist in the Olympic 400m hurdles, was named runner-up for Sportswoman of the Year.
Ricketts and Clayton were among five female contenders vying for the Sportswoman of the Year title. Other nominees included Ackera Nugent, who set a national and world-leading 100m hurdles time of 12.24 seconds; Nickisha Pryce, the first Jamaican woman to run the 400m in under 49 seconds; and Llori Sharpe, a cyclist who claimed gold in the Women’s Road Race at the Elite Caribbean Cycling Championships in Guyana, breaking the dominance of track and field among the nominees.
MVP Track Club became the first institutional recipient of the prestigious award for its contributions to developing world-class track and field talent.
The Chairman’s Award went to GC Foster College for its role in advancing sports education and performance in Jamaica.
