There are reports that repeat double Olympic Games sprint gold medalist Elaine Thompson-Herah has indicated her intention to quit the MVP club via a message to the organization.
Thompson-Herah has been at the club under the guidance of Stephen Francis since 2014 and became the fastest woman alive this season with a 10.54-second clocking.
According to a report from the Jamaica Gleaner newspaper, Francis appeared coy when quizzed about the shocking development.
“In short, I would not be surprised if she (Thompson-Herah) is not here. I don’t know if she is going to be here but neither do I for anybody else in her situation,” Francis was quoted.
“What I can tell you is that I am not in the habit of revealing communication when occurs between me and my athletes so I can’t comment on that, but I would suggest to you that if you have heard that and you believe it and you want to find out, then the best person is her because from my perspective we start back practice sometime in October, just after Heroes weekend and my philosophy is usually to see who turns up.
“So, in summary, I can’t tell you what Elaine has said to me or what I have said to her, and secondly, if she tells you that this is her plan, then I will sit and see what happens in the middle of October,” he added.
“What my experience tells me is that athletes in general, especially those who come from a low expectancy level, in other words, not much was expected of them, they are usually unable to separate themselves from the people who hop unto their bandwagons. They tend to have short memories and they tend to listen to people they just meet or who have been around them since they became successful or famous and they usually, from my experience, have a very great influence. It takes a smart and strong athlete to sit back and say ‘you guys weren’t around so leave me let me make my decision’,” the veteran coach noted.
It is being speculated that husband Derron Herah will take over coaching responsibilities for Elaine.
