Melissa Jefferson-Wooden: ‘I Could Have Smashed Elaine Thompson-Herah’s 100m Record in Tokyo With Right Tailwind’

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden believes her historic sprint could have been even faster with more favorable conditions, revealing she felt capable of breaking the 10.60 barrier.

The American sprinter, who stunned the field with a lifetime-best performance in Tokyo 11 days ago, reflected on her execution in a star-studded race that featured Julien Alfred (St. Lucia), Tina Clayton (Jamaica), Marie-Josée Ta Lou (Ivory Coast), Dina Asher-Smith (Britain), and training partner Sha’Carri Richardson (USA).

Speaking on the NightCap podcast, Jefferson-Wooden, who also won gold in the 100 meters and 4 by 100 meter events explained how the slightly positive +0.3m/s tailwind may have hindered her chances of running even faster. 

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“Absolutely. I thought I was going to run 10.5 if I’m being honest,” Jefferson-Wooden said. “With the right tailwind, I felt I had a chance to run anywhere between 10.52 and 10.55.”

Her claim echoes the kind of blistering times produced by Elaine Thompson-Herah, the two-time Olympic champion, who famously ran 10.54 in 2021, the second-fastest women’s 100m ever recorded behind Florence Griffith-Joyner.

Despite clocking the fastest time of her career in Tokyo, Jefferson-Wooden insisted the race was not flawless.

“Looking back, my transition was great, but my start could have been a tad more explosive,” she admitted.

 “My coach always drills into me that in races like these, the biggest advantage is to put it away in the first 30 meters. If I had been more aggressive at the start, maybe I wouldn’t have needed a tailwind to go faster.”

Jefferson-Wooden also explained why she has worked hard to sharpen her acceleration and frequency phases, rather than relying solely on her trademark fast start.

“I like to say my strength is my start, but I never get complacent. In the past, I had the frequency but not the strength to control it — my legs would move that fast but my arms couldn’t keep up. 

“This year, especially in that race, my acceleration and transition were probably the best I’ve ever had.”

By aligning herself with sprinting greats such as Thompson-Herah and perhaps, even Florence Griffith-Joyner’s 10.48 record set in 1988, Jefferson-Wooden has shown not only her ambition but also how fine the margins are at the top of women’s sprinting — where a tailwind or a sharper start could separate a career-best from history-making speed.