When Kerron Stewart won the class one 100 metres at the Boys and Girls Athletic Championships in 2003, she gave her gold medal to her coach, Raymond Graham.

Five years later, Graham watched the girl he once coached at St Jago High School sprint to the finish line to claim a silver medal in the Olympic 100 metre finals. It was hard for him to hide his pride.

He said: "It's a great feeling to know that someone you coached at high school can do well at the senior level. I expected her to get gold, but just to be in the finals, among the top eight in the world is a great achievement."

He described Stewart as a "hardworker and a very disciplined girl" and said her achievement was "a reward for displaying those traits."

Her talent was spotted at an early age while she was a student of the John Mills All-Age School and she was recruited to St Jago where she bloomed under Graham's guidance.

Always a champion

"She was always a champion. She went to the Penn Relays and was part of the 4x4 team that broke the world junior record, and she was second at the world youths. She can run from 100 to 400 and she can do hurdles as well. She's very versatile," said Graham, who coaches at the Hampton University in Virginia.

He told THE STAR that he still treasures the medal she gave him back then and said, "How many people would do that? She gave me the same day and I still have that medal. I will cherish it."

He commended Shelly-Ann Fraser and Sherone Simpson: "I kept saying that once the playing field was level, Jamaica would dominate. All the girls did exceptionally well. Shelly-Ann is a revelation and she showed her potential at the national trials. She came out of nowhere, but you could see the progress. She was the underdog, but when you are the underdog, you have nothing to lose. All three did well and made their country proud."