Dina Asher-Smith, photo by Getty Images for British Athletics
Dina Asher-Smith has raced the 400m, 200m and now, the 100m this season. She took a nice win in Birmingham and showed that her fitness is quite high. This story is by Deji Ogeyingbo. Deji writes two columns a week for us, including Deji’s Doodles, which we publish on Fridays each week.
Dina Asher-Smith: Britain’s sprinting jewel gets back to reckoning with her 100m victory in the Birmingham Diamond League
There’s nothing new or secretive about how good a sprinter Dina Asher-Smith is, with the British star the only European to ruffle feathers with the Jamaican and American ladies over the last three years.
The world began to take note of her unique talents when she stormed to three Golds at the European Championships in Berlin in 2018, winning the 100m, 200m and anchoring the British team to victory in the 4x100m relay. Her 21.89 winning performance in the 200m was a 2018 world lead while her 10.85 winning time in the 100m equalled the world lead.
Dina Asher-Smith, photo by Getty Images for British Athletics
Asher-Smith proved her credentials once again in 2019 when she blitzed to a new Personal Best of 10.83s to win Silver in the 100m at the World Championships in Doha, beating Olympic Champions Elaine Thompson-Herah and African Champion Marie Jose Ta Lou. She followed suit with 200m victory in a new National Record of 21.88s.
There was no stopping her at that point. Asher-Smith was in the top 3 female sprinters in the world over the 100m and 200m. Until Covid-19 and a hamstring injury happened.
At the Birmingham Diamond League a few days back, Asher-Smith roped to victory in a modest 11.11s in what was a star-studded women’s 100m final beating Olympic Bronze medallist Shericka Jackson and USA Gabby Thomas.
Prior to this year, it seemed followers of track and field had forgotten about how good a sprinter Asher-smith is, and this served as a reminder of not just her immense talent but how strong a competitor she can be after shaking off what was a very torrid 2021 season in which she didn’t make the final of the women’s 100m.
2021 saw the likes of Thompson-Herah, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Sha’Carri Richardson all run comfortably inside 10.6 and 10.7 with the Jamaicans recording a 1-2-3 in the women’s 100m final in Tokyo. Deep down, she must have looked on and knew she belonged in their mix.
Surely the drive to run faster will be there when she sees her main opponents break grounds with big numbers. Florence Griffith Joyner’s 100m and 200m record was under threat after the Olympics in which Thompson-Herah broke the Olympic record in the 100m. It was the talk of the sprinting world for the most part of last year. How soon will the record fall?
Asher-Smith spoke about it during the press conference of the Birmingham Diamond League. “I think someone can break it, definitely, given the advantages of shoe technology, definitely given the increase in track technology,” said Asher-Smith, who runs her first 100m of the season at the Birmingham Diamond League on Saturday. “I ran in Eugene and that track was great.
Despite her travails in the last year, Asher-Smith still sees herself in the mix of athletes who can break the world record. Her performance in Birmingham proved that. The time, itself might not have been swashbuckling, but still, it was a massive confidence booster. Her opening races in 2019 were 10.94 and in 2021, 11.45, and now, 11.11.
Dina Asher-Smith, May 21, 2022, Muller British GP, photo by Getty Images for British Athletics
Right from the start, the World 200m Gold medallist already stole a march on Jackson who was just beside her, and once she got into her drive phase, there was no stopping her as she held on for the win.
This here might yet prove the turning point for Asher-Smith, but if anything meaningful is to come out of what is going to be a busy summer of athletics, her win in Birmingham would have been where it all started.
