Jamaica’s Shanieka Ricketts and Ackelia Smith were out of the medals in the women’s triple jump at the World Athletics Championship in Tokyo on Thursday, placing fifth and eighth, respectively.

The 33-year-old Ricketts, who won silver medals at the 2019 World Championship and the 2024 Olympic Games, never got going and mustered 14.56m, which was only good for fifth place.

Ricketts was set back by a couple of foul jumps and never got going to the lofty heights expected of her.

She started with 14.56m, and that was followed by three foul jumps, then 14.43m and 14.53m.

Meanwhile, the 23-year-old Smith—the heir apparent to Ricketts and the three-time NCAA champion—leapt to 14.37m for eighth place and will only get better as her personal best is 14.54m.

Smith had jumps of 14.31m, 13.79m, 13.71m, 14.06m and 14.37m to be the eight best in the world.

The event was won by Cuba’s Leyanis Perez Hernandez with 14.94m, with Thea Lafond of Dominica taking silver with 14.89m.

Crowd favourite and four-time World champion and world record holder Yulimar Rojas of Venezuela, grabbed the bronze after making a return from a two-year absence with 14.76m. Cuba’s Liadagmis Povea finished just short of the podium in fourth place, 14.72m.

Hernandez had been the best this year and deserved to win gold today, but will have her hands full with Rojas—the greatest triple jumper in history.

An achilles tendon injury sidelined Rojas throughout 2024 and most of 2025, and she competed with strapping on her right knee. She began the competition promisingly with a leap of 14.76m, but she lacked the usual spring in her step.

However, Hernandez, who won her first global title at the World Indoor Championships in Nanjing earlier this year, arrived in Tokyo with great momentum and was not to be denied.

The 23-year-old Cuban led the competition from the first jump and even achieved the winning mark twice.