Alfred and LaFond: representing small countries with big talent

The unparalleled universality of World Athletics was on full display on Saturday night (3) as two of the smallest countries in the international federation joined the ranks of Olympic gold medal winners.

Dominica (population 72,000) and St Lucia (180,000), near neighbours in the string of  Caribbean jewels that stretch between Puerto Rico and South America, can now boast of home-grown Olympic champions following the victories of Thea LaFond in the triple jump and Julien Alfred in the blue ribband 100m. In terms of population, Dominica is now the smallest nation ever to have won an Olympic medal.

There are now more than 100 countries that have won Olympic medals in athletics, after Burkina Faso joined the ranks as the 100th nation in Tokyo three years ago, courtesy of Hugues Fabrice Zango’s bronze medal in the triple jump.

Other small nations who have won Olympic gold in athletics include fellow Caribbean islands Grenada (population 125,000), courtesy of 2012 Olympic 400m champion Kirani James, and The Bahamas (population 410,000), which has performed far above its size with seven Olympic sprinting gold medals since 2000.

Sprinter Pauline Davis was the first Bahamian Olympic gold medallist (200m) and was also a member of the winning 4x100m relay team, both in Sydney in 2000. The Bahamas also claimed two gold medals in Tokyo, both 400m titles, through dual Olympic 400m champion Shaunae Miller-Uibo and Steven Gardiner.

In the 20th century, one of the smallest countries to win Olympic gold on the track was Luxembourg, which produced the 1952 Olympic 1500m champion Joseph Bartel, but it is the Caribbean that has proved to be the great athletics cradle for small nations.

Paris’s Stade de France has also been a welcoming place for tiny countries with big ambitions, as the venue where five-time Olympian Kim Collins, from St Kitts and Nevis (population 47,000), won the 100m at the 2003 World Athletics Championships.

COUNTRY	POPULATION	GOLD	SILVER	BRONZE	TOTAL
Dominica	73,000	1	0	0	1
Grenada	125,000	1	1	2	4
St Lucia	180,000	1	0	0	1
Barbados	282,000	0	0	1	1
Iceland	382,000	0	1	1	2
Bahamas	410,000	7	2	5	14
Luxembourg	640,000	2	0	0	2
Djibouti	976,000	0	0	1	1

Olympic success has a far bigger impact on these countries than on the sporting behemoths that win regular medals, and both Alfred and LaFond are hopeful that their performances will be transformational for athletics in their countries.

They each made their way into the sport at global level through the pathway of the US college system, Alfred at the University of Texas, where she was a three-time NCAA champion and LaFond at the University of Maryland.

The thrill of their victories was inextricably tied to their understanding of how these would be received in their countries, which rarely feature on the world stage, and inspire future generations of athletic children.

“It means a lot to me, my coach, my country, which I’m sure is celebrating now,” Alfred said after upsetting the pre-race favourite and reigning world champion Sha’Carri Richardson to win the 100m.

“Growing up, I used to be on the field struggling. With no shoes, running barefoot, running in my school uniform, running all over the place. I hope this gold medal will help Saint Lucia build a new stadium, to help the sport grow.”

She said she had dreamed since she was a child of becoming St Lucia’s first Olympic medallist “and it turned out to be gold”.

“I definitely knew my nation would be watching,” she said.

"I feel honoured to be an ambassador for my country. Not many people know about Saint Lucia. Sometimes people ask me where it is. Now, as an Olympic champion, people will be searching for Saint Lucia.

"I’m proud to wear my country’s name across my chest and represent them. I’m looking forward to celebrating with them when I go home."

LaFond, who jumped a national record of 15.02m to win the triple jump, has also put Dominica on top of the podium at two global championships this year, starting with the world indoor title in Glasgow in March.

“Here we are, Olympic champ! Dominica’s first medal, it’s gold. Indoor was the first medal, it was gold. What a year, what a life, oh my God, wow,” she exclaimed.

LaFond also hopes that her triumph will result in more recognition and better facilities for the young athletes who follow her into the sport in her home country.

“We’ll start with the basics, we’re not Dominican Republic,” she told the assembled media after her victory.

“We’re about 70,000 people. It is a gorgeous gem in the Caribbean. Our neighbours also include St Lucia, Barbados, our primary language is English, and now we have an Olympic gold medal.

“Considering how my phone is going off right now, I feel it’s an understatement to say it’s a really big deal. In the indoors (championship) season we made history. Here I’m the only female representing anything in athletics for my country, and we’re leading with gold.

“Sometimes you wonder if being from a small country means you have less access to resources, but we’ve been really big on just having quality over quantity. Just executing and I hope my country is just proud. I think it’s a big deal for them.”

She began campaigning immediately for her government to build an athletics track to help the next generation to succeed in athletics.

“There is a stadium in Dominica, there is no track,” she said. “To be clear, Dominica does have an entire track blueprint that’s been set for years. There is a programme that brings facilities to countries in need. The biggest issue is getting the land allocation for this track. What I'm really hoping is this medal lights a fire under all government officials to get that one.

“I want a place where the next generation doesn’t have to go overseas to even start. I want there to be interest where the kids can just go on to the track and race each other for the fun of it. The genuine, innocent intrigue in the sport is really needed.”

Small nations, big hearts, and big athletic talent.

Nicole Jeffery for World Athletics