Dominica’s Thea LaFond set a second-round national record of 15.02 meters to win the country’s first Olympic medal at the Paris Games on Saturday.
According to World Athletics, the athlete showed promise by winning gold at the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow with a national record of 15.01 meters, which she later broke.
The 30-year-old immigrated to the United States from Dominica when she was five years old. She started taking dancing lessons at the age of 13. She discovered track and field at John F. Kennedy High School in Silver Spring, Maryland, and later competed at the University of Maryland when her family couldn’t afford dance lessons. She competed in multiple events, including the heptathlon and indoor pentathlon, and she enjoyed the process of honing her athletic abilities.
Since 2016, LaFond has focused on the triple jump and won the 2022 Diamond League title, as well as bronze and silver medals in the 2018 and 2022 Commonwealth Games.
She met Aaron Gadson, who eventually became her coach and husband, after making her Olympic debut in 2016.
Following her victory at the Stade de France on Saturday night, the pioneer stated, “It’s an understatement to say it’s a really big deal.” Living in a small country may seem to limit access to resources. But we’ve been very focused on (prioritizing) quality and just executing it.”
She stated, “My country’s name is Dominica (dah-min-EE-ka).” We are not in the Dominican Republic, hence it is pronounced differently. We are approximately 70,000 individuals. Not seven million. Not seventy million. Seventy thousand. This Caribbean jewel, located near Martinique and Guadeloupe, is truly stunning. Our neighbors include St. Lucia, Barbados, and Trinidad & Tobago (further south). Our primary language is English. “And now they have a gold medal.”
Many sportsmen, like LaFond, are concerned about the lack of track and field facilities in Dominica.
“The biggest issue has been getting the land allocation for this track,” she added, adding that her country has yet to make headway in infrastructure development. “Give us the land; there will be a track. I truly hope that this award inspires all government authorities to get that done. I want a country where the future generation doesn’t have to travel abroad.
LaFond’s brother, Chreign, a Navy defensive end football player, recently shared a viral video commemorating his sister. Although he was unable to travel to Paris due to his upcoming athletic season, his team captured his reaction on camera and informed Chreign of the good news during practice.