Prime Minister Bruce Golding said McKenley was a lesson and an example to all Jamaicans in what it meant to give of one's self.

"Herb McKenley belonged not just to his family, not just to Calabar (High School) which he had great passion about, but he belonged to the Jamaican people and there is so much in his own achievements that could be regarded as a template for many of us," Golding said.

"I don't think there has ever been any person, certainly not since the 1952 Olympics, that has represented Jamaica at any International Athletic Meet who was not impacted by the life of Herb McKenley," he added.

Leader of Government Business in the House, Derrick Smith, said although McKenley's passing was inevitable given his illness, he was nonetheless shocked at the news.

Meanwhile, Wykeham McNeill, of the opposition People's National Party, said while much had been said about the Olympian's achievements on the track, what could not be ignored was the quality of his life as an individual.

"He was one of those great Jamaicans whom everybody admired, respected and loved. All the years I knew him I never heard anyone say a bad word about him. He lived a life of service," McNeill said.

McKenley, who ran on a Jamaica Labour Party ticket in the 1972 elections, was also remembered as one who still managed to remain non-partisan in his approach, gaining the respect of persons across the political divide.