St. Lucian sprint diva and 2024 Olympic 100m champion – Julien Alfred is all, but ready to contest a key part of her Wanda Diamond League title defense with appearances at the Bislett Games in Oslo and BAUHAUS Galan in Stockholm this June, 2025.
Alfred, 23, coasted 10.72 seconds to win 100m gold at the last Summer Olympic Games in Paris, becoming the first ever sprinter to achieve such feat for St. Lucia and establishing herself among the biggest names in the sport.
She also showed brilliant form in the Wanda Diamond League, claiming her first ever meeting victory in Monaco before sweeping to the 100m series title at the final in Brussels.
She will be out to defend her Diamond Trophy in 2025, with Oslo and Stockholm providing two early opportunities to get points on the board on the road to this year’s final in Zurich.
Alfred will compete at BAUHAUS Galan in the Swedish capital on June 12 before taking the train with fellow athletes across the border to Norway for the Bislett Games on June 15.
“Visiting the Scandinavian countries is one of my dreams. I look forward to feeling the hospitality from the Scandinavian spectators and hope to live up to the standard of these two meetings and to give them a memorable performance,” said Alfred.
She added that Diamond League appearances against the world’s best athletes would be crucial as she sets her sights on a first outdoor world title at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo in September.
“The upcoming Diamond League- season is very important because I won’t be having any trials for the World Championships. So, I hope these races put me closer to my goals for Japan,” she said.
The Wanda Diamond League is the elite one-day meeting series in global athletics. It comprises 15 of the most prestigious events in global track and field.
Athletes compete for points at the 14 series meetings in a bid to qualify for the two-day Wanda Diamond League Final, which will be held in Zurich on 27th and 28th August 2025.
By Abdul Latif Haruna