At the start of the ongoing Paris Olympics, there were sixty five countries in the world that had never won an Olympic medal of any description. It is pleasing to note that that number has been reduced to sixty three by two Caribbean women.
Saint Lucia's Julien Alfred came first in the women's 100 metres final with a time of 10.72 seconds. She went on to claim a silver medal in the women's 200 metres final. At the age of twenty three she is destined to become a heroine in her small island nation for the rest of her life and good luck to her!
Just a hundred miles north of Dominica is another island nation - Dominica. This is where thirty year old Thea LaFond was born though she emigrated to the USA with her family when she was a small girl. She now lives in Maryland.
Last Saturday, in the final of the Women's Triple Jump, she achieved a "personal best" distance of 15.02 metres and a gold medal for Dominica. As I say, it was her birth country's first ever medal. Even though it's a long time since she departed, she will also be a heroine forever on the island she still calls "home"
After her victory, Julien Alfred commented,“I said to God, I prayed to him that whenever I win, I’ll give him the glory always. So, I thank God for bringing me through, for giving me the strength to come so far."
Thea LaFond said, “It’s an understatement to say it’s a really big deal.”
For athletes from small nations, just participating in The Olympics is a great achievement but how much better it must feel to have actually earned gold medals!
from Yorkshire Pudding https://ift.tt/I6cRyAU