The three-time world champion heaped praise on Julien Alfred’s 2024 season and predicted that she will be lethal in 2025.
Donovan Bailey has lauded Julien Alfred for putting in the world in the 2024 season and promised that 2025 will be much better for the Saint Lucian sprinter.
Alfred was one of the most impressive stars of the 2024 season being just but her second year as a professional athlete. She turned professional in 2023 after claiming top honours in the 100m and 200m races at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships. Following her impressive collegiate career, she also signed with Puma.
The 2023 season was impressive for Julien Alfred but not enough to place her on the world map. She finished fourth in the 200m and fifth in the 100m at the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary.
As the athletes look to kickstart their seasons, one question remains: is 2025 the year another sprinter finally gets a hold of Florence Griffith-Joyner’s long-standing world record?
Going into the 2024 season, she had her goals set and was willing to work around the clock to achieve them despite facing a series of challenges at the start of the season.
The 23-year-old defied all odds and beat reigning world champion Sha’Carri Richardson to take the crown in the women’s 100m at the Paris Olympic Games, a historic feat since she had won Saint Lucia’s first gold medal. She even went ahead to win a silver in the 200m, finishing second behind Gabby Thomas.
Julien Alfred completed her season with a win in the women’s 100m at the Diamond League Meeting final in Brussels. Donovan Bailey asserted that she worked hard and she deserved to achieve all that and more.
The three-time world champion further noted that she has embraced the newfound fame with so much humility and is a great ambassador of the sport together with Gabby Thomas.
“She deserves every single thing that she got. I mean, she went to the Olympics and came away with the Olympic champion and then won silver in the 200m. Julien Alfred and Gabby Thomas are real people and real stars. Sponsors should come on board and support them,” Donovan Bailey said.
“They are ambassadors of the sport…Julien Alfred had a stellar season, was consistent the whole year and we talked about the early season stuff for some of these athletes. You know what, based on their training, they peaked at the right time…for her, winning in Paris and then ending her season with a win in Brussels.”
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Letsile Tebogo reflected on his career’s turning point, winning his first global gold in Nairobi.
Julien Alfred now shifts focus to the 2025 season where she intends to win a gold at the World Championships in Tokyo, Japan, the only medal she has yet to claim.
She has her work cut out especially since she is the reigning Olympic champion but with dedication to training and hard work, Alfred is one of the stars to watch.
