Pickering resident pleased with maiden Olympics

Charles finishes 10th in long jump final

August 22, 2008

Brad Kelly

BEIJING -- Tabia Charles is returning home without a medal, but with a big smile.

The Pickering long jumper checked out of the final early on Friday night after the field of 12 was reduced to the top-8 after three jumps. Her best leap of 6.47m left her 10th, but she was still upbeat and pleased with her performance.

"I'm not disappointed," she said in looking back over her Olympic debut. "Things could have gone better. I'm happy.

"I would have loved to finish a lot higher. I'm very proud of my first Olympics, one of the youngest out there. It was a great experience.

"Definitely 2012 will be a different story. I'm very sure."

Her jumps were progressively better, opening the night with a mark of 6.16m, and bettering that with a 6.38m leap in her second attempt.

The jumps were far below her personal best of 6.82m set in June of this year at a meet in Greece, and also a little behind the 6.61m she set in qualifying back on Tuesday.

She was relaxed before tonight's final, mouthing a 'Hi' to her mom and dad as the camera passed by during the introductions. The stress of competing in a final and a packed National Stadium in Beijing didn't faze her.

"For me, it's fun," said the 23-year-old. "It's not like a stress thing for me. It's another day, another track meet.

"This is a way for me to get myself out there and open doors.

"When I came here, who thought Tabia Charles would make it to the finals, so I'm very happy and plus I surprised a lot of people."

She is looking forward to closing out her Olympic experience here over the next couple of days and returning home, a place she hasn't graced since leaving July 30th to prepare for the Games.