Watch, Olympics 2024: Julien Alfred, Thea LaFond create history; Ryan Crouser wins 3rd shotput gold
St Lucia’s Alfred and Dominica’s LaFond won their respective country’s first-ever medals at the Olympics.
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Julien Alfred and Thea LaFond led their two tiny Caribbean island nations to first-ever Olympic medals when they won golds in the women’s 100m and triple jump, respectively, at the 2024 Paris Games on Saturday.
On a heady night of track and field, Femke Bol fired out a broadside at 400m hurdles rival Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone with an incredible show of running that anchored the Netherlands to victory in the 4x400m mixed relay.
And American Ryan Crouser won an unprecedented third consecutive Olympic title in the men’s shotput.
In the women’s 100m, St Lucia’s Alfred upstaged the much-hyped American world champion Sha’Carri Richardson, storming to a gun-to-tape victory in 10.72sec.
“It means a lot to my country,” said Alfred. “I’m sure they’re celebrating right now.”
It was a stunning success in pouring rain at the Stade de France, aided by world champion Richardson’s terrible start and the withdrawal before the final of the injured Jamaican veteran Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce.
Richardson did fight back to claim silver in 10.87sec, but Fraser-Pryce missed out completely on her bid to become the first Olympian to medal in the same athletics event in five consecutive Games dating back to her gold in Beijing in 2008.
Growing up barefoot
In any case the evening belonged to 23-year-old Alfred, overcome with joy after realising she had...
