OLYMPIC CHAMPION! Thea LaFond Wins Olympic Triple Jump Gold

PARIS – After becoming the first world champion for Dominica, Maryland alum Thea LaFond added Olympic Champion to her resume after taking Gold in the triple jump on Saturday at Stade de France.
 

LaFond posted a mark of 15.02 meters (49-feet, 3.5 inches) – a new national record in the event – to become the first Maryland track and field alum to medal in the Olympics. She is the 10th Gold medalist in Maryland history and the first Terp student-athlete to win Gold since Vicky Bullett in 1988. She hit the personal-best mark after going 14.35 meters (47-feet, 1 inch) in the qualifying round on Friday.

The result was also history for her Caribbean island nation as the country’s first ever Olympic medal.

Jamaica’s Shanieka Ricketts and American Jasmine Moore took silver and bronze, respectively.

LaFond took the lead on her second attempt with the mark of 15.02 meters – a world best this year.

 

Earlier this year, LaFond won the triple jump title at the 2024 World Indoor Championships. She posted the top jump in the world at 49-feet, 3-inches for the year.

This also marked the third Olympics for LaFond as she competed in the 2016 and 2021 games.

Before beginning her professional career, LaFond earned multiple All-American honors at Maryland, including placing in the top-ten in both the women’s high jump and triple jump at NCAA Outdoor Championships in 2013. In the indoor season in 2013, Lafond was named the USTFCCCA Mid-Atlantic Field Athlete of the Year. During her senior season in 2015, Lafond was named the Big Ten’s Field Athlete of the Year.