Julien Alfred delivered a commanding performance to win the women’s 100 meters at the Oslo Diamond League on Wednesday (12 June), leading a day that saw Caribbean athletes feature prominently across several disciplines at the Wanda Diamond League stop in the Norwegian capital.
Running her first 100m race of the season, Alfred of Saint Lucia exploded out of the blocks and never looked back, crossing the line in 10.89 seconds (+1.1), the second-fastest time in the world this year. The Olympic finalist finished ahead of Marie-Josée Ta Lou-Smith of Côte d’Ivoire, who clocked 11.00, and Great Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith in 11.08.
Alfred’s run reaffirmed her status among the leading contenders for Olympic gold in Paris, as the Saint Lucian continues to build momentum in a season that already includes relay duties and indoor success.
“It was my first race of the season so I was a little rusty, but I got the win under my belt which is the main thing,” Alfred said. “And I got to meet Usain Bolt—yesterday for the first time ever and then two days running I got to meet him again! It is a great honour to have met him. The race itself, I just wanted to be competitive. I head to Stockholm now so I have to rest and travel and compete again quickly, but I will go to win again.”
“As for my season, I am Olympic champion so I am the one to beat, but I really want to add World Champion to my name as well.”
In the men’s triple jump, Jamaica’s Jordan Scott landed a personal best 17.34m (+1.1) in the opening round, a leap that proved unbeatable throughout the evening.
“My coach said to me I needed to get one in early as it was going to get cooler as the night wore on, and so I was pleased to execute that first jump so well,” Scott said. “And it proved to be the winning jump. It did cool down, which makes it harder for jumpers. But to jump another PB so early in the season is pleasing, as it shows everything is coming together and I am moving in the right direction.”
Scott finished ahead of Portugal’s Pedro Pichardo (17.06m), while Cuba’s Lázaro Martínez, the 2022 world indoor champion, secured fourth with 16.91m.
Caribbean athletes also swept key positions in the women’s triple jump, where Cuba’s Leyanis Pérez Hernández topped the field with a season’s best 14.72m (+1.3). Shanieka Ricketts of Jamaica followed closely in second with 14.57m (0.0), while her compatriot Ackelia Smith landed at 14.26m (+1.3) for sixth. Cuba’s Liadagmis Povea also featured in the top five with 14.31m (–0.1), and Dominica’s Thea Lafond placed fifth, matching Smith’s distance but edged on countback.
World and Olympic champion Karsten Warholm of Norway shattered the world record in the men’s 300m hurdles, clocking an astonishing 32.67 on home soil. Although the event is not contested at major championships, Warholm’s time erased the previous best and added yet another record to his résumé. There were no Caribbean entrants in the race.
In the women’s 400m hurdles, Gianna Woodruff of Panama secured third place with a strong 54.45 performance, just behind Dalilah Muhammad (53.34) and Slovakia’s Emma Zapletalová (54.44). Woodruff, a consistent finalist on the Diamond League circuit, continued her steady progression toward the World Championships.
Sada Williams of Barbados returned to the circuit in the women’s 400m, finishing eighth in 50.94 in a competitive race won by USA’s Isabella Whittaker in 49.58. The Barbadian bronze medallist from Budapest 2023 showed signs of improving form as she eyes another global podium this summer.
In the men’s 200m, Reynier Mena of Cuba outpaced the field with a 20.20 clocking (+1.5), holding off Switzerland’s Timothé Mumenthaler (20.27) and Canada’s Andre De Grasse (20.33). The result marked Mena’s biggest victory on the Diamond League stage since his breakthrough 2022 season.
Meanwhile, in the men’s pole vault, Armand Duplantis of Sweden captured the spotlight again with a 6.15m clearance, reinforcing his dominance in the event.
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