Paris 2024 Olympics: Julien Alfred's stunning 100m sprint to gold celebrated in Saint Lucia

When Julien Alfred sprinted to athletics gold in the women’s 100m at the Olympic Games Paris 2024 on Saturday, 3 August, it was more than just a win — albeit a stunning upset victory — for a single athlete.

As the first Olympic medal winner ever from the tiny island nation of Saint Lucia, she hopes her win is the first of many, as does her Caribbean island nation.

“Growing up, I used to be on the field struggling, with no shoes, running barefoot, running in my school uniform, running all over the place," the 23-year-old Alfred said in the afterglow of her shock upset over reigning world champion Sha'Carri Richardson of the USA, who had to settle for silver.

"We barely have the right facilities. The stadium is not fixed. I hope this gold medal will help Saint Lucia build a new stadium, to help the sport grow.”

Alfred suspected that her country was already celebrating.

“I’m going to start crying. I’ve been trying to stay strong as much as possible. It means a lot to me, my coach, my country, which I’m sure is celebrating now.”

Alfred was right. A post on X (formerly Twitter) showed a watch party in Castries. Hundreds of fans gathered to cheer her on, and then broke into dancing, singing and cheering after she won.

It was one of four watch parties set up by the Ministry of Youth Development and Sports Saint Lucia, which urged Saint Lucians to come together, celebrate and don national colours in support of Alfred in her Saturday quest for Olympic gold.

Saint Lucia Prime Minister Phillip J. Pierre shared his own personal excitment about Alfred's Olympic victory in a phone call with Jamaican radio station Nationwide90FM, saying, "I am happy, I am happy, I am happy; that's all I can say."

"This is a historic day, and I am very happy that I can be part of that history," added Pierre. "It is raining, but no one cares about the rain."

His office shared congratulations to Alfred on social media, with one post proclaiming 3 August "Juju Day." However, this wasn't the first time Saint Lucia's government had explicitly supported Alfred.

In 2023, the government included support for Alfred in its budget, awarding her a diplomatic passport to make travelling easier. It also prepared a special welcome ceremony for Alfred at Hewanorra International Airport after she won the women's 60m event at the 2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships.

Alfred rose to prominence as a youth athlete, winning the women's 100m at the 2017 Commonwealth Youth Games and earning a silver medal in the same event at Youth Olympic Games Buenos Aires 2018.

She attended college at the University of Texas, where she won two NCAA titles in the women's 100 metres plus one NCAA title in the women's 200 metres. She was selected to represent Saint Lucia at the 2023 World Athletics Championships, where she registered a fourth-place finish in the women's 200 metres and fifth-place finish in the women's 100 metres.

Alfred donned Saint Lucian colors once more during the 2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships, claiming victory in the women's 60 metres with a time of 6.98 seconds. She built off that win with a postiive outdoor season that saw her run 10.78 seconds at the Racers Grand Prix on 1 June.

Alfred entered Paris 2024 as one of the favourites for a medal. Her time of 10.72 seconds in the women's 100m final represents a major milestone in her career, making her the "fastest woman in the world" for the first time.

At 23 years old, she will likely have more victories ahead of her, and Saint Lucia will have her back the whole way.