Supermoms rock the IAAF party

Giving birth is probably the hardest physical challenge a woman’s body can endure. However, returning back to international competition after giving birth is probably just as tough.

On Sunday at the IAAF World Championships, two women Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce of Jamaica and Alisson Felix of USA joined a select band of sportspersons who have fought back the odds to make impressive return to competitive sports.

Jamaican Fraser-Pryce staked her claim as one of the greatest female sprinters of all time by storming to victory in the women’s 100 meters final while Felix broke Usain Bolt’s record for the most world titles, grabbing her 12th overall and first as a mom as part of the first mixed-gender 4x400m relay team.

Fraser-Pryce blew away a world-class field in a time of 10.71 seconds to claim her fourth World Championship title in the discipline and eighth world title overall.

The victory came just 13 months after Fraser-Pryce gave birth to her son Zyon.

“It was hard. I was really scared when I had to do a C-section and was out for nearly 10 weeks. I was unable to lift weights on my back,” the 32-year-old said after her victory, where she was joined on the track by Zyon.

Surrendering a high-intensity training regime and peak physical form can be hard, and these changes aren’t always easy for elite athletes to accept. Asking a sportswoman to listen when her body is telling her to slow down or stop can be the biggest challenge.

“So it was a long journey coming back physically and mentally because I was 30 and everyone else was running fast. I was worried about whether I was going to come back OK. I just really worked hard,” she added.

Fraser-Pryce said she did not deviate from her goals post pregnancy.

“When I heard people said I should call it a day, I just knew I wasn’t ready to go. I knew I had something left to do. I never lost focus on the goal and the dream.”

“Tonight (Sunday) was one of those moments I am really proud of because for women in athletics it’s very hard to take a break and come back to sprinting. It took a lot of work and a lot of sacrifice.

“Having Zyon being able to witness tonight is definitely a moment I’ll cherish. He reminded me of how much I had to work and fight as a woman. The world believes you should wait until you’re finished to have a baby, but I had other plans,” she added.

She isn’t the only sportsperson to have shifted from childbirth back to elite athleticism in an astoundingly short time frame.

Felix at 33, broke her tie with Bolt for the most world titles.

“It’s been difficult with a lot of complications physically to overcome. I’ am very grateful to be here. I didn’t have a full training season like I used to have, that was a real challenge for me this year. To be able to make it here is a real big deal for me,” Felix said about the physical which went into the mixed relay race at the World Championships.

On beating Bolt’s World Championships’ gold medal record she said: “I didn’t come here for this at all, I came with a different mindset. For me this was actually super special, because my daughter was here for me. It’s always nice to make a little bit of history, but this was a different kind of year for me.”