Ennis-London

Joy and excitement filled Macca Tree, a small district in West Central St Catherine, when their daughter Delloreen Ennis-London won bronze at the World Championships in Berlin, Germany, yesterday.

Ennis-London was winning her third medal at these Championships, having secured silver at the 2005 Championships in Helsinki, Finland, and bronze in Osaka, Japan, in 2007.

Excited

But yesterday, it was like she had secured her first gold, said her sister Nellion Ennis - judging from the excitement in the community.

"We were excited," she said. "We were jumping up and making a lot of noise when we realised she won the bronze."

Nellion, who watched the race from the nearby Eccleston Basic School where she was working, said everybody stopped working and shared in the joy of the moment.

"When we saw her on the screen saying, 'Brigitte a third mi come, mi come third', we were so excited."

She said: "(People) were making a lot of noise, beating the desks, the doors."

Looking for second

When asked if she had expected the achievement, especially in a race which could easily be considered the most competitive in track and field these days, Nellion reply was: "I was looking for her to finish first or second."

But, according to her, the belief briefly disappeared when "I saw her lining up in lane eight".

"I knew it was always going to be difficult for her, but probably if she had got a good start she would have got silver or gold."