Elaine Thompson-Herah is taking another step toward rebuilding her career. After a hamstring setback forced the Jamaican sprint legend to abandon her 2026 championship plans, a new training clip offers a glimpse of her return to the track as she looks toward Beijing 2027 and Los Angeles 2028.
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Renowned athletics journalist Owen shared the footage on social media with the caption, “The road to Beijing and LA starts here.” Training with Elite Performance Track Club under coach Reynaldo Walcott, the five-time Olympic gold medalist appears to be focusing on the fundamentals. Her sessions include grass sprints, core exercises with an exercise ball, and resistance-band drills to strengthen her legs. There are no championship spotlights or dramatic race finishes here, just the patient work of an athlete trying to rebuild her speed.
That approach follows a season in which Thompson-Herah repeatedly chose caution over chasing medals. After returning to competition following a lengthy Achilles injury layoff, she showed flashes of her old brilliance. However, another hamstring problem eventually convinced her to step away from the remaining championships and prioritize her recovery.
The decision came despite a promising start to her comeback. Thompson-Herah returned to international competition at the 2026 World Athletics Relays in Botswana, helping Jamaica win the women’s 4x100m relay in 42.00 seconds. Yet the victory came with a warning. She felt her leg grow heavy during the final stretch and knew she could not afford to ignore what her body was telling her.
“I must say we’re grateful that we got it done and stayed healthy,” she said after the relay. “Coming into the straight, my leg felt heavy. I could feel the hamstring, so I told myself I had to bring the team home.”
Thompson-Herah nevertheless continued her comeback and produced an encouraging performance at the Boris Hanžeković Memorial in Zagreb in June. She won the 100m in a season-best 10.91 seconds, setting a meeting record ahead of compatriot Brianna Lyston and Poland’s Ewa Swoboda. The result suggested that the Jamaican was gradually finding her rhythm again.
But the improvement did not mean she was ready to push through another major championship. Thompson-Herah revealed that a minor hamstring setback at the Jamaican national trials had forced her to reconsider her plans, including her hoped-for appearance at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.
“I won’t do any championship this year even though that was the main goal, to go to the Commonwealth,” she explained, adding that she was nursing a minor hamstring injury. Instead of risking another prolonged absence, she decided to concentrate on rebuilding and gaining experience through selected races.
The choice carried particular weight for a sprinter who had already lost so much time to injury. In June 2024, Thompson-Herah ruptured her Achilles tendon at the NYC Grand Prix, ending her hopes of competing at the Paris Olympics. The injury also kept her away from competition for much of the following two years, forcing her to watch a major chapter of her career unfold from the sidelines.
A rebuilding year with bigger goals ahead
Thompson-Herah returned to the track in 2026 with a different mindset. Rather than immediately chasing the times that once made her the world’s dominant sprinter, she wanted to establish that her body could handle competition again. Her 10.92-second performance in April and subsequent victory in Zagreb offered encouragement, but she remained realistic about the work ahead.
“I’m satisfied, I’m just rebuilding back, doing some races. I don’t care about the time, I just care about execution,” she said earlier in the season. “I’m still very ambitious but as I said, this is a rebuilding.”
That perspective reflects how far she has travelled from her peak. Thompson-Herah won the Olympic 100m and 200m double at Rio 2016 and repeated the achievement at Tokyo 2020, becoming the first woman to win both sprint titles at consecutive Olympic Games. In 2021, she clocked 10.54 seconds in the 100m, making her the second-fastest woman in history over the distance.
Those achievements have not disappeared, but returning to that level requires patience. Her early exit from the 2026 championship calendar suggests she is unwilling to let ambition dictate every decision, particularly after experiencing how quickly an injury can derail years of preparation.
She also reflected on the season in an Instagram post, writing, “Reflection of this season and it owes me nothing.” She emphasized the importance of positivity, self-belief, and staying focused when others doubt the journey.
Now, the latest training footage offers a small but meaningful update. Beijing’s 2027 World Athletics Championships and the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028 remain significant targets, but Thompson-Herah’s immediate focus is on getting stronger without rushing her return.
For a champion accustomed to making history on the track, the next victory may begin long before she reaches a starting line. This time, the goal is to build a body that can carry her there.