Saint Lucia and Dominica Just Won Their First Olympic Medals Ever—And They’re Gold

Saint Lucia and Dominica Just Won Their First Olympic Medal Ever—And They’re Gold

Two Caribbean athletes simply made historical past on the 2024 Paris Summer Olympic Games—successful their nations their first ever Olympic medals. And not simply any medals; each have been gold.

Saint Lucia’s Julien Alfred beat out Team USA’s Sha’Carri Richardson, the reigning World Champion who was closely favored to take dwelling the gold within the girls’s 100-m dash on Saturday. Alfred received the race by 0.15 seconds. Another American, Melissa Jefferson, took bronze. 

“I’m nonetheless attempting to consider what simply occurred,” Alfred stated after the race in Stade de France. “It hasn’t sunk in but.In Saint Lucia’s capital of Castries, folks gathered for a watch party celebrated whereas watching Alfred make historical past. 

“I’m simply wanting ahead to the celebration after I go dwelling,” she stated. 

Alfred wakened Saturday at 5 a.m. and wrote in her journal:

Julien Alfred, Olympic Champion

She additionally took an image on Snapchat after consuming breakfast and stated it.  

Julien Alfred, Olympic Champion

Alfred beat Richardson within the semifinal whereas working within the lane subsequent to the defending world champ. Did she suppose that despatched a message for the ultimate? “I do not take into consideration sending a message,” Alfred stated “This yr. I’ve actually been attempting to deal with simply primarily pondering of my execution as a substitute of enthusiastic about who’s subsequent to me. Sometimes after I do this, I are inclined to panic.”

She hopes to extend St. Lucia’s visibility. She’s just a little bored with Uber drivers, after listening to her Carribean accent, saying “the place’s that?” when asking the place she’s from. “I simply really feel so honored to put on my nation’s title throughout my chest,” she says. 

When did she know she had the race received? 

“This morning.” 

Roughly an hour on Saturday earlier than Alfred’s medal, Thea LaFond made historical past for Dominica when she received the gold with a 15.02 meter bounce within the triple bounce—incomes the nation its first-ever Olympic medal. 

Earlier this yr, LaFond received the triple bounce on the World Athletics Indoor Championship in Glasgow. “I’m the one athlete right here from my nation, so to have the ability to come out and get the very best final result and put this little island on the map is a privilege,” she stated after the win, based on worldathletics.org. “This one is for my folks. I don’t even know what to say any extra!”

Saint Lucia and Dominica have a mixed inhabitants of roughly 250,000. Dominica started competing within the Olympics in 1993, whereas Saint Lucia made its Olympic debut in 1996.

What ought to folks find out about Dominica, TIME requested LaFond after her victory?

“O.Okay, we’ll begin with the fundamentals,” LaFond stated. First, it’s pronounced DOM-IN-E-CA. “We’re not the Dominican Republic. So it is pronounced otherwise. We’re about roughly 70,000 folks. Not 7 million, not 700,000 And it’s a beautiful, beautiful gem within the Caribbean. It is close to Martinique and Guadeloupe. The French folks will know, they’re French islands. Neighbors embody Saint Lucia, Barbados, and additional south Trinidad [and] Tobago. Our main language is English.” 

“And now they’ve an Olympics gold medalist.”