Paris Olympics: Chukwuma and Enekwechi falter as Alfred wins historic Olympic gold for tiny St Lucia

Team Nigeria’s Rosemary Chukwuma failed to make it to the final of the women’s 100m at the 2024 Olympic Games.

Chukwuma faltered in the semi-finals of the event, finishing in last place.

She started the race in a commanding fashion but failed to sustain the momentum.

In the men’s shot put final, Chukwuebuka Enekwechi finished sixth with a throw of 21.42m missing out on a medal.

Julien Alfred embraced on Saturday as she became St Lucia’s first Olympic medallist in defeating the USA’s world champion Sha’Carri Richardson to take gold in the women’s 100m in a national record of 10.72.

The 23-year-old US-based sprinter, who had powered away from Richardson in the semifinals, repeated the treatment and finished a metre clear with a look of utter joy on her face as Richardson took silver in 10.87 and bronze was claimed by her compatriot Melissa Jefferson, who clocked 10.92.

Alfred claimed afterwards she had drawn inspiration in the morning by watching recordings of Usain Bolt’s most famous victories.

The expected challenge of Bolt’s illustrious Jamaican compatriot, 2008 and 2012 champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce came unexpectedly to naught as she was a DNS in her semifinal.

There was a historic achievement too in the women’s triple jump, where world indoor champion Thea LaFond also became the first Olympic medallist for her country, Dominica. She also made it gold thanks to a second-round national record of 15.02m.

Femke Bol’s addition to the Dutch 4x400m mixed relay team worked to dramatic effect as she moved from fourth to first on the final leg to bring the baton home in a European record of 3:07.43, relegating a United States team that had set a world record of 3:07.41 in qualifying to second place.

Bol’s transformative talent earned the Netherlands glory a year after her stumble in the closing metres had given gold in this event to the United States at the World Championships in Budapest.

Bol, who will seek to wrest the 400m hurdles title at these Games from the grasp of world record-holder Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, ran a split of 47.93 in relegating a United States quartet that had lowered the world record to 3:07.41 in the previous night’s heats to second place.