Who is Julien Alfred? All you need to know about Saint Lucia's women's 100m gold medalist

Julien Alfred has won two medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Julien Alfred wrote her name in the history books after winning the women’s 100m gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics. By doing so, she immortalized herself and won the first medal for her country at the prestigious quadrennial event. She was born and brought up in Saint Lucia, a small island nation in the Caribbean that only has about 180,000 people.

Coming from such humble beginnings, few people had bet on her winning one of the most high-profile events at the Olympics that attracts huge viewership across the world. However, she silenced her doubters in an electric performance that saw her sprint into becoming a legend of the sport. 

Julien Alfred’s steely focus and unwavering determination were major factors in winning the gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics in France. A look into her upbringing and early days in the sport gives a clearer picture of why she was destined for greatness.

Early Days

Born in Ciceron, Castries, Saint Lucia, on June 10, 2001, Julien Alfred began her education at Leon Hess Comprehensive Secondary School. Later, Alfred moved to Jamaica, where she attended St. Catherine High School and began excelling at athletics.

Losing her father at an early age was a huge challenge for Alfred, who put all her focus on athletics. In 2018, she moved to the United States of America, attending the University of Texas to pursue a Bachelor’s in Youth & Community Studies.

Early phases in sprinting

Julien Alfred truly started to shine in athletics after moving to the USA and attending the University of Texas. As identified by her librarian, she ran for the Texas Longhorns from 2018 to 2023. Before that, she won the Central American and Caribbean U-15 Championship in 2015, emerging as a young prospect. 

Two years later, she won the Commonwealth Youth Games 100m title in Nassau, Bahamas, making a stronger impact at the international level. A year later, a silver medal followed at the Youth Olympic Games held in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

At the collegiate level, Alfred won the 2022 NCAA Division I Championships, secured gold at the 2022 Caribbean Games and won the 2023 NCAA Indoor Championships with a time of under seven seconds from 60m. She also won the 200m sprint event at the 2023 NCAA Indoor Championships.

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Sprinting for nation’s glory

Julien Alfred became the first athlete from Saint Lucia to win an NCAA Division I Championship when she did so in 2022. At the Commonwealth Games in the same year, she won silver in the women’s 100m sprint event. At the 2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships, she won the gold medal in the 60m event. 

During the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, Julien Alfred finished fifth in the women’s 100m final, where Sha’Carri Richardson secured first place. Her biggest achievement, representing her country of Saint Lucia, has been the gold medal at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.

An inspiration

Julien Alfred’s rise to greatness from a relatively unknown sprinter to a living legend is a brilliant reminder of the importance of determination and focus in forging a successful career in athletics. From almost moving away from the sport at age 12 after the passing of her father to becoming the first Olympic medal winner for Saint Lucia, Alfred has come a long way.

She also won the silver medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics in the 200m event, adding two medals to the tally of Saint Lucia. Her path going forward will be full of challenges as staying on the top is way harder than reaching the top. Regardless, she has become an inspiration to thousands of little girls all over the world who would like to chart successful careers in athletics or sports. 

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