The Rotary Club of St Andrew North has rewarded sprint hurdler Brigitte Foster-Hylton with a Vocational Service Award, for her gold-medal achievement at the World Championships in Berlin in August.

The award, worded in a lovely citation, characterised Foster-Hylton's gold medal success, saying: "The Rotary Club of St Andrew North is pleased to honour Brigitte Foster-Hylton for her dedication to her vocation ... for the attention she pays to achieving at optimal levels, with grace and dignity ... and for the manner in which she is serving as an inspiration to young Jamaicans, so that they, too, can be propelled toward scaling heights they might not otherwise have thought possible."

The Rotarians recalled the athlete's days after St Elizabeth Technical High School (STETHS), when she had moved on to Texas State University and her professional stint, during which she encountered several injury setbacks that threatened to ruin her career.

They also made mention of some close calls she had by taking silver (2003) and bronze (2005) at the World Championships. After failing to win a medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, she announced her retirement, but was influenced back into competition by her coach, Stephen Francis.

This never-say-die attitude, according to the Rotary Club, was the main reason behind the presentation to Foster-Hylton.

The award is handed out by each club across the globe every October to someone in the community who has exemplified outstanding professional achievement, while maintaining very high ethical standards.

National record

According to the citation read by Daniel Gordon and presented by President Donovan Brown, Foster-Hylton, who holds the national record at 12.45, " ... has approached her preparation for achieving excellence in her chosen profession of athletics with almost religious fervour".

Foster-Hylton, the reigning Commonwealth Games champion, at age 34, clocked 12.51 seconds on her way to winning Jamaica's first ever gold in the sprint hurdles event at a global championship. She was overjoyed.

"Thank you very much for the time and effort to honour me with your beautiful citation," said Foster-Hylton, the 2003 Pan Am American Games champion.

"This is a fine gesture which I deeply appreciate."