Julien Alfred stunned pre-race favourite Sha’Carri Richardson in the women’s 100m race at the Paris Olympics to become the fastest woman in the world and give Saint Lucia its first Olympic medal in the history of the Games.
In a race held after a heavy downpour at the Stade de France, Julien Alfred finished in 10.72 seconds for gold while Richardson claimed silver with 10.87 secs.
Here are four things you need to know about Julien Alfred:
Julien Alfred is Saint Lucia’s first medallist
St Lucia, an eastern Caribbean island, is a nation of around 1,80,000 people. And Julien Alfred is the island’s first Olympic medal winner in history. Of any colour!
“Growing up, I’ve always said I wanted to be one of Saint Lucia’s first Olympic medallists… first gold medallist at the Olympic Games,” said Julien Alfred, who is from Castries, Saint Lucia’s capital and largest city.
Julien Alfred was spotted by school librarian and shaped in USA
Julien Alfred was initially spotted by the school librarian. Once her talent was ascertained, she moved to Jamaica as a teenager to train, then attended the University of Texas, where she became a multiple-time NCAA champion.
Julien Alfred was shaped by the American collegiate system, the NCAA, where she ran for the Texas Longhorns from 2018 to 2023. In that span, she was an 11-time USTFCCCA All-America selection. After collecting her final NCAA championships, Julien Alfredwas named the 2022-23 Big 12 female athlete of the year.
Julien Alfred walked away from the sport due to father’s demise
Julien Alfred walked away from the sport after losing her father when she was around 12. It was her then coach who convinced her to return to the sport.
“He (her father) believed I could be an Olympian. That I can be here,” Julien Alfred said after her gold medal. “To come out with the win, happy I was able to do it. I want to attribute it to (my father). … He’d be so boastful of his daughter being an Olympian.”
The Usain Bolt connection
Julien Alfred revealed that to get ready for the 100m final, she had spent the morning of Friday watching footage of Jamaican sensation Usain Bolt.
“I just watched how he just executed,” Alfred said.
After winning the race, she also celebrated like Usain Bolt would.
“You don’t ever see me get to celebrate like that ever,” Alfred said. “I’m just really happy, it happened on the biggest stage of my career.”
