The Olympic 100m champion talks about how she can equip herself to win sprinting’s biggest prize
When AW catches up with Julien Alfred, she squeezes some of London’s sights into an itinerary full of personal appearances. , home to about 180,000 inhabitants, where he originates from.
It’s a natural fit. Alfred is the country’s most famous sporting export, after all, becoming the first Saint Lucian to ever win a medal at the World Athletics Championships, winning 60m gold at the World Indoors in Glasgow back in March , then a national holiday was declared when the Olympic 100m gold and 200m silver medals appeared this summer. performances, all of which helped her to the top spot in the AW International Female Athlete of the Year poll.
“Julien Alfred Day” was celebrated on September 27 as the culmination of a four-day commemoration of his achievements. Asked to name the most memorable moment she has experienced since sending the world’s greatest female sprinters down the purple track in the pouring rain at the Stade de France, Alfred takes little time to respond.
“I think what an impact I’ve had on the country,” he says. “(Seeing) a country coming together and just celebrating gold.” “But I still have something to live for now.”
Julien Alfred (Getty)
Dealing with the highest expectations is a skill Alfred has had to pick up quickly in 2024. The year hasn’t been one solid straight line to glory. He landed in St. Lucia to a hero’s welcome after that win and him hailed as a winning hero, for one whose early experiences in athletics included running barefoot and often training at his school in uniform, it was a lot to take in. The medal made a big impact in more ways than one.
Alfred is based in Texas, where he trains under coach Edric Florel and as part of a sprint group that also includes Britain’s former 200m world champion Dina Asher-Smith, as well as rising Irish talent Rashidat Adeleke. in the early stages of the outdoor season where the 2022 Commonwealth 100m silver the medalist realized that all was not well.
“April was when I just felt like I wasn’t myself,” she says. :
“Because it was (the indoor gold) St. Lucia’s first medal, now they expected so much from me during that time. Instead of me focusing on doing it for myself first, being the one who put in the hard work and made the sacrifices, I I was thinking. “I don’t want to let my people down. I don’t want to let St. Lucia down. I think that’s what happened after winning the world indoors.”
Olympic Games Women’s 100m Final (River)
Alfred admits that something came close to breaking down, but the first step he took to try to change things was both simple and bold. “He understood and patiently worked with me to get me ready for the Olympics. He got me off the track and we worked mentally and physically to get back on track where I am today.”
Indeed, between early May and the opening 100m heats at the Paris Olympics on August 2, Alfred ran just five times, but when it came to the biggest competition of his life, he was up for the task.
While the first series of the Netflix documentary SPRINT focused on the rivalry between world 200m champion Sherika Jackson and world 100m champion Sha Kari Richardson, not much attention was paid to steely St. Lucia.
It wasn’t the world title that made Alfred feel like he could be a real contender, it was the Olympic semi-final, when he beat Richardson with relative ease, that brought the signals he was looking for.
Julien Alfred (Getty)
However, there was more noise from outside to lock in. Before the final, the media began to spin with stories as both the American and Shelley-Anne Fraser-Pryce battled to safety in the heats, the two-time Jamaican Olympic 100m champion eventually joined his countryman Jackson, withdrew due to injury.
As the line-up for the Paris showdown was confirmed, there was also a pre-race flood that left the track glistening and covered in shallow water in the adjacent line, Alfred looked terrible.
In fact, the contest was decided from the earliest stages as Alfred flew out of the blocks and opened up a sizeable gap that could not be closed as she hit the line in 10.72, Richardson’s 10.87 and Melissa Jefferson’s 10.92 in third place.
Julien Alfred (Getty)
“When you know what you’re there for, when you know your purpose, you just can’t afford to get sidetracked,” Alfred says I was there, to just focus on executing my race plan and not worry about anyone else.”
Alfred has watched the race many times and, although it is such a commanding performance, he admits that he is not completely satisfied with it. after finishing fifth and fourth in the 100m and 200m respectively).
“I don’t think there’s anything I would change (about the Olympic final),” Alfred said “Going into the World Cup, there’s a lot to work on with my coach. There’s always something to work on. Nobody’s perfect.”
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