“When I grow up I want to be like Usain Bolt“, little Julien Alfred is known to have said more than a decade back, when she was only a child. In 2024, though, her affirmation became reality and she smashed the 100 meters final at the Olympics 2024 in Paris. Julien clocked an impressive 10.72, beating clearly flamboyant US running superstar, Sha’Carri Richardson, the clear favorite of the final. Why I am approaching this subject, has nothing to do only with the running event itself, even if that is, indeed, a queen sport at the Olympics’, but because Julien Alfred is from Saint Julia and she became the first ever medalist from this tiny insular country from the Caribbean. And not only that, the first gold-Olympic champion medalist!
Julien Alfred, first Olympic medal for Saint Lucia
For those who read my website, know I’ve been for two weeks in a vacation in Saint Lucia – in fact, as said, we are probably the only two Romanians from history that spent 12 nights on this island! – so then I have some insights about the population here. Julien Alfred, even if she left in Jamaica at 14 and then to US at the college – the top two countries when it comes to the sprint world – kept the appearance of a typical Saint Lucian: an ice cold look, without any forced smile, focusing on what she got to do. They have this sobriety, even they are very kind people. They are not faking enthusiasm or smiles, they just focus on what they need to do. Julien Alfred looks like a mind-blowing sprinter and probably will dominate this discipline for some years to come.
No facilities to train, but Julien Alfred moved to Jamaica
The facilities in her native countries for sports are very poor, she pointed out this, and it is something very similar to Romania, like David Popovici highlighted. The only big difference is that Saint Lucia has 180K inhabitants, not 19M, and they also have close to none tradition in any major sports. Now they have, starting 3rd of August 2024, Saint Lucia has an Olympic Gold Medalist, this being Julien Alfred at 100 meters sprint. And what a story this wonderful young lady has! Started running everywhere at 6, idled her career between 12 and 14 (after her father passed away) and then, persuaded to resume by her coach, she moved to Jamaica, followed the path of Usain Bolt and on the same 3rd of August 2024, she write it down, in the morning: “Julien Alfred, Olympic champion!” Affirmations do work!
Photo: gettyimages.com