'Taught me how to compete' — Julien Alfred on how going to high school in Jamaica shaped her sprinting career

Olympic 100-meter champion has revealed how her time in high school in Jamaica laid the foundations for her recent success on the track.

 Alfred, who recently clinched the 100-meter gold at the 2024 Olympics, defeating the likes of and , also earned a silver in the 200 meters and capped off the season by winning the Diamond League 100-meter title.

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However, according to Alfred, her rise to the top of sprinting can be traced back to her formative years competing in Jamaica. 

Having attended Leon Hess Comprehensive Secondary School in Saint Lucia from 2013 to 2015, she moved to St Catherine High School in Jamaica, where she honed her craft from 2015 to 2018. 

Her exposure to high-level competition at the famous Jamaican Boys and Girls Championships (Champs) gave her the mental toughness and experience necessary to excel at the highest level.

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“There are so many things. I think Jamaica taught me how to compete in front of a large crowd,” Alfred shared during an interview with

“Nothing could have prepared me more than Boys and Girls Champs. Maybe if I did not get that experience in Jamaica, I would have been so frightened competing in front of such a loud crowd at the Olympics.»

Alfred noted how the intense atmosphere and fierce competition at Champs helped her develop the mental fortitude required to compete at the global stage. “The atmosphere, high-level competition, and how mentally tough you have to be to compete in those champs—Jamaica helped improve my career,» she said.

Reflecting on the energy of the iconic event, she added, “The energy at Boys and Girls Champs is crazy, like no other. We will have that in Saint Lucia, which will hopefully get us to that point, but the atmosphere, energy, and competition is like no other.”

Alfred’s career has seen significant milestones even before her Olympic success. She was the 100-meter champion at the 2017 Commonwealth Youth Games held in Nassau, Bahamas, and she secured a silver medal at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires, Argentina, behind Nigeria’s Rosemary Chukwuma. 

After high school, Alfred pursued a bachelor’s degree in Youth & Community Studies at the University of Texas, where she continued to develop both academically and athletically.

Alfred’s success in 2024 is a testament to the blend of experiences from her time in Jamaica and her continued development in the United States, proving that the lessons learned early in her career set the stage for her Olympic triumph.