KINGSTON, Jamaica — One of track and field’s most influential figures has died. Stephen Francis, the Jamaican coach who helped turn a small Caribbean island of just 2.8 million people into one of the world’s dominant forces in sprinting, passed away late Saturday. He was 64. The training club he co-founded announced his death Sunday but did not reveal a cause.
Back in 1999, Francis helped establish the Maximising Velocity & Power Track & Field Club — known as MVP — which grew into one of the premier training programs in the sport. Over the decades, MVP produced wave after wave of Olympic champions and world record holders, fundamentally changing what was possible for Jamaican athletes training on home soil.
Bruce James, the president of MVP, honored Francis in a written statement, saying, “Stephen Francis changed the trajectory of Jamaican athletics for the better. He proved that Jamaican athletes, guided by Jamaican coaches, supported by Jamaican management, and training in Jamaica, could become the very best in the world.”
Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness reflected on what he called Francis’ “bold decision” to walk away from a career in finance and commit himself entirely to coaching. At the time, the most elite Jamaican athletes typically looked overseas for top-level training. Holness wrote on X that the choice “helped shape one of the greatest legacies in track and field and inspired countless athletes to believe in themselves and pursue excellence,” adding, “Jamaica has lost a remarkable son whose impact will be felt for generations.”
World Athletics, the sport’s international governing body, expressed that it was “deeply saddened” by the news, noting that Francis’ vision helped slow Jamaica’s talent drain and deepened the island’s already fierce love of track and field.
The list of world-class athletes Francis coached reads like a who’s who of modern sprinting. Among them are Olympic champions Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Elaine Thompson-Herah, and Shericka Jackson, former men’s 100-meter world record holder Asafa Powell, Olympic silver medalist Kishane Thompson, and dozens of other international medalists.
In 2017, Jamaica recognized Francis with the Order of Jamaica, one of the country’s highest civilian honors, for his extraordinary contributions to the sport.
His influence stretched well beyond Jamaica’s borders. Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley noted that Francis inspired athletes across the wider Caribbean region, pointing to Barbadian Olympic medalist Sada Williams, who trained under Francis at MVP. “For so many boys and girls across the Caribbean, his work proved that small islands can still shake the world,” Mottley wrote.
