Julien Alfred made history on Saturday as she claimed St. Lucia’s first ever medal at the Olympics after a blistering run that saw her upset pre-race favourite Sha’Carri Richardson.
23-year-old got off to a decent start in the final, which was missing five-time world and two-time Olympic 100m champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, and eventually capped her top performance with a time of 10.72, which is also a national record.
“I’m thanking God and my dad, who didn’t get to see me. He passed away in 2013. Dad, this is for you. I miss you. I did it for him, I did it for my coach and God,” Alfred said after her historic performance.
Team USA’s Sha’Carri Richardson settled for second spot with a time of 10.87 seconds while teammate Melissa Jefferson completed the podium after clocking 10.92 seconds to claim a bronze medal.