Florence Griffith Joyner of the USA — The fastest 100 m female athletes of all time ft. Florence Griffith-Joyner, Elaine Thompson Herah (Source: Getty)

10 fastest Female 100m athletes of all time ft Florence Griffith-Joyner, Elaine Thompson Herah

Modified Aug 03, 2024 18:41 GMT

Florence Griffith-Joyner and Elaine Thompson-Herah are among the greatest 100m athletes of all-time. Both have produced some stellar performances in the discipline throughout their respective stellar careers.

The 100 m sprint has been a part of the Summer Olympics since the very first edition itself. However, it took the organizers a good 32 years, to find it appropriate to organize a women's 100 m event as well.

The women's 100m has been equally competitive as the men's 100m. From the heroics of Florence Griffith-Joyner, to the unique records of Merlene Ottey, the women's 100 m has a rich history of its own.

Here are 10 of the fastest 100 m female athletes to have graced the sport.

#10) Merlene Ottey

Merlene Ottey, the Jamaican trendsetter [Image Source: Getty]

Before Usain Bolt and Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce became household names for both Jamaica and the world, it was Merlene Ottey who gave Jamaica global recognition with her achievements.

Merlene Ottey is one of the most decorated sprinters of all time, with 9 Olympic medals to her credit. There is one catch though : none of them are gold medals. Merlene had come close to winning an Olympic gold medal at Atlanta in 1996. But she lost to Gail Devers of USA by a whisker. The only consolation for her was her personal best of 10.74 seconds, which she clocked a couple of months later.

#9) Christine Arron

Christine Arron of France [R] competing at Athens Olympics 2004 [Image Source: Getty]

A contemporary of Gail Devers, this French athlete was often compared to Florence Griffith-Joyner. Her personal best of 10.73 seconds, created in 1998, continues to be the European record till date.

She is one of the few sprinters to have broken the 11 second barrier without having won an individual Olympic medal, her lone medal coming from the 4 x 100 m relay race at Athens Olympics in 2004.

#8) Marie-Josee Ta Lou-Smith

Marie Josee Ta Lou of Ivory Coast, one of the fastest American sprinters

Marie Josee Ta Lou is to women's 100 m what Kenyan athlete Ferdinand Omanyala is to men's 100 m.

The 35-year-old sprinter from Ivory Coast has missed the chance to be on the Olympic podium twice, and both times by a fraction of a second. However, Marie Josee Ta Lou does have two World Championship silver medals and a bronze medal to her credit in both 100 m and 200 m.

#7) Sha'Carri Richardson

Sha'Carri Richardson at the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials [Image Source: Getty]

This 24-year-old sprinter from Dallas, Texas [also the defending world champion in 100 m] hopes to emulate the achievements of Florence Griffith-Joyner at Paris Olympics 2024.

Despite facing a setback at Tokyo Olympics, Sha'Carri Richardson slowly through the ranks to become one of the most promising sprinters from USA since Florence Griffith-Joyner.

Her personal best of 10.65 seconds makes her a strong contender for the Olympic gold medal at Paris Olympics 2024.

#6) Shericka Jackson

Shericka Jackson, another strong contender for gold at Paris 2024 [Image Source: Getty]

Another strong contender for the Olympic gold medal at Paris Olympics 2024, Shericka Jackson has a personal best of 10.65 seconds, only next to Sha'Carri Richardson of USA.

Apart from 11 World Championship medals, Shericka Jackson has one Olympic gold, 1 silver , and 3 bronze medals to her credit. The only gold medal she was in the 4 x 100 m relay category at the Tokyo Olympics.

#5) Marion Jones

Marion Jones Thompson, one of the most controversial American sprinters of all time

All the controversy and the notoriety notwithstanding, former American sprinter Marion Jones has had some clean records as well.

One of them includes a personal best of 10.65 seconds, which Marion created at the 1998 World Cup [also known as the IAAF Intercontinental Cup, which was discontinued in 2018].

Marion Jones had won three gold medals and two bronze medals at Sydney Olympics in 2000. However, she was stripped of all of them, when she confessed to using performance enhancing drugs in 2007.

#4) Carmelita Jeter

Carmelita Jeter, one of the fastest American sprinters after Florence Griffith-Joyner

Carmelita Jeter is to women's 100 m what Tyson Gay was to Men's 100 m. She is only the fourth fastest woman in this discipline, with a personal best of 10.64 seconds, only behind the likes of Florence Griffith-Joyner from USA, and the Jamaican sprinters Elaine Thompson-Herah, and Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce.

Her best individual performance at the Olympics was in London 2012, when she won a silver medal in the women's 100 m.

#3) Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce

Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce, the 'female Usain Bolt' [Image Source: Getty]

Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce rose at the same time as Usain Bolt, and is regarded as one of the greatest female Jamaican sprinters of all time, alongside Elaine Thompson-Herah.

With a personal best of 10.60 seconds, Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce has eight Olympic medals, including three golds, 4 silvers, and a bronze to her credit in 100m, 200m and 4 x 100m relay respectively.

#2) Elaine Thompson-Herah

Elaine Thompson-Herah, one of the most decorated Jamaican sprinters [Image Source: Getty]

One of the best female sprinters of all time since 'Flo-Jo' , Elaine Thompson-Herah is also one of the most decorated Olympians, only next to Allyson Felix. She is the defending Olympic champion, though she won't be available to defend her title this time.

Her personal best is 10.54 seconds, which is the current Jamaican national record, and only 0.05 seconds behind the long standing world record set by Florence Griffith-Joyner.

1) Florence Griffith-Joyner

Like her or not, you just cannot ignore Florence Griffith-Joyner. Famous for her flamboyant personality, as well as her long nails while competing, Florence Griffith-Joyner was one of the few bright spots of an otherwise forgettable Seoul Olympics.

During the Olympic trials, she created new world records in both women's 100 m and 200 m, something unbroken even today. At the Seoul Olympics, she almost equalled Fanny Blankers-Koen for most Olympic gold medals by a female athlete in one edition, with three gold medals, and a silver medal to her credit.

However, only a year later, Florence Griffith Joyner bid goodbye to athletics, and 9 years later, she passed away after suffering a seizure in her sleep.