By BRENT STUBBS

Chief Sports Editor

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net    

PARIS, France — Charisma Taylor had the time of her life at the 2024 Olympic Games.

Making it a double dose, competing in the women’s 100m hurdles after she fell short of advancing to the final in the triple jump, the 24-year-old Taylor was thrilled that she performed as well as she did.

Taylor was sitting on the bubble to advance to the final with her third place in the second of three heats in 12.63.

But with more at stake in the final heat won by Puerto Rico’s Jasmine Camacho-Quinn in a season’s best of 12.35, Taylor’s bid to advance to the final was thwarted as the final two spots were occupied by Jamaican Ackera Nugent 12.44 and France’s Cyrena Samba-Mayela in 12.52.

Despite falling short, Taylor said she was still pleased with her performance.

“I felt great. I had a really great start and I was going well for more than the first half, but I got too slow to the hurdle and I sort of stumbled,” she recalled.

“But I’m very happy with what I did. I know there’s more in the tank. I can’t wait to talk to my coach and try to perfect it. But I just want to thank God and all of my sponsors and my whole family who are here.”

Now it’s time to celebrate for Taylor after she competed as only the  second Bahamian to do the double in the triple jump and the hurdles in the same Olympics, following in the footsteps of Shonel Ferguson, who broke grounds when she competed in both the 100m and the long jump in one of her three appearances at the games. 

It just would have been an icing on the cake if she had advanced to the final with Charlton.

But no doubt, there was time for her to celebrate as she was joined by a nine-member contingent, led by her parents Dewey and Patrice Taylor, who came in from the Bahamas to cheer her on.

Taylor, meantime, thanked her sponsors Kraven, Sonic Express, Anachtenist Wellness, Paul Winder, Sun Oil, Career Builders and Taylor Made Elite for their support in helping her get ready for the Olympics.