With Yulimar Rojas, winner of every outdoor global triple jump final since 2017, unable to defend her title because of an achilles tendon injury, the opportunity to take over the top of the podium was seized in historic fashion by Thea LaFond at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games on Saturday (3).
With a second round national record of 15.02m, LaFond also secured the first ever Olympic medal for her country, Dominica.
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On a night when the warm conditions of the previous two days gave way to some late rain, silver went to Shanieka Ricketts of Jamaica with 14.87m, and USA’s Jasmine Moore claimed bronze with 14.67m.
LaFond had indicted her potential earlier in the year by winning gold at the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow with a national record of 15.01m, which stood as the best this year until she broke it herself.
Having started as a multi-event athlete at the University of Maryland, LaFond has made higher progress in athletics having concentrated on triple jump since 2016, winning bronze and silver at the 2018 and 2022 Commonwealth Games respectively, and earning the 2022 Diamond League title.
Spain’s Ana Peleteiro-Compaore had made an early attempt to keep the title within the training group presided over by Cuba’s fabled Sydney 2000 Olympic and four-time world long jump champion Ivan Pedroso, taking a first-round lead with 14.55m.
But that effort was overtaken first by Ricketts’ opening effort of 14.61m and then by Cuba’s Leyanis Perez Hernandez with 14.62m before LaFond’s second-round effort, and then Moore’s best jump of the night.
What could Perez Hernandez, undefeated outdoors this year and possessor of the previous best effort this season of 14.96m, do to get on to the podium?
Not enough as it turned out – her best of 14.62m, set in the first round, eventually placed her fifth, one place below her compatriot Liadagmis Povea, who had a best of 14.64m.
Peleteiro-Compaore looked somewhat devastated at finishing fifth, only managing to improve to 14.59m.
Ukraine’s world silver medallist Maryna Bekh-Romanchuk was never able to properly deploy her competitive instincts, producing two fouls before registering her only scoring effort of 13.98m.
“It is absolutely beyond my wildest dreams,” said LaFond. “We always said it takes one jump. Second jump at the World Indoor Championships was the big one. Second jump outdoors at the Olympics was the big one, that’s what it took.
“The rain was kind of in my favour, it came down as soon as I was done with that second jump – thank you God for working with me.
“Here we are, Olympic champ! Dominica’s first medal, it’s gold. Indoor was the first medal, it was gold. What a year, what a life, oh my God, wow.”
Reflecting on her result, Ricketts said: “It went spectacular. This is a dream come true. I’m just grateful and I feel like I have a lot of gratitude for everything I’ve achieved.”
On the support of her husband and coach, Kerry-Lee Ricketts, she added: “I think he wanted this medal more than I did. Not that I wasn’t passionate, but he worked so hard over the year. We missed the medal in Tokyo and this is just redemption from the last Olympic Games.”
Moore was “overwhelmed with emotion” on earning her bronze medal, and completed a victory lap.
“My whole family’s out here and it’s definitely a lot different from Tokyo. It was just super special tonight.” (World Athletics)
