LIKE all Saint Lucians, I feel blessed to have witnessed Miss Julien “Juju” Alfred’s phenomenal medal-winning performances at the 2024 Paris Olympics and the ensuing explosion of national unity, consciousness and pride that has rocked Saint Lucians in every nook and cranny of our country and beyond.
This reaction is unprecedented. It was not as strong when Sirs Arthur Lewis and Derek Walcott became Nobel Laureates. This is probably due to the following factors. Firstly, social media was not as prevalent then, as it is now. It enabled us to track Juju’s progress in real-time and amplified national fervour before, during and after her competitions.
Secondly, witnessing her performances, enabled us to better appreciate the global impact and national significance of her triumphs.
Thirdly, by observing the physical nature of her efforts, we were able to assess her determination to fight off her challengers on her way to the medal podium.
Fourthly, Juju’s persona and her personality have captured our hearts. She projects a mix of even-temperedness, focus, commitment and character. It’s clear that at her core, she is a humble and caring person and that her heart beats for her country and her people. One of her first acts on becoming a professional athlete was to establish a Foundation to uplift youth through education and sport. All were impressed with the way she carried herself amidst our nation’s fawning last week. She surrendered herself to all who wished to touch her, hug her and take selfies with her. She even allowed those who wished to bite her medals to do so. In her brief, but touching speeches, she never failed to recognise those who have contributed to her successes, thus far. It was a joy watching her mingle with school children at her Alma Mater. This quote from Les Brown with which she ended her speech at the school rally in Soufriere, ought to be canned and used as a rallying call at every school assembly. “No matter how hard it is, or how hard it gets, I’m gonna make it.”
Finally, there is the compelling Hollywood-themed, appeal of Juju’s life story, including the tragic loss of her father at the age of 12. Two years later, she would leave her mother, family and community and move to Jamaica and later to Texas, USA to chase her dream of becoming a successful, elite athlete. She openly admits that along the way she was assailed by self-doubt and the temptation to give up and return home. Had she done so, it’s unlikely we would have known or even cared, as is our habit. And so, it’s to Julien’s eternal credit, that she persevered and dug deep, to power her way to success and give us these seminal scenes of national unity and pride.
After reflecting on all that transpired in Juju’s orbit and ours over the past six weeks, I’m convinced she was sent by God at this critical juncture in our nation’s development, to help us focus our thoughts and energies on the things that should matter in our quest to achieve resilient and sustainable development. If this divine intervention doesn’t help us to get our act together, then it’s unlikely we can avoid the abyss.
Our Government has rightly sought to expose our youth to the power of Julien’s example, through school rallies and visits by her to select schools. Tourism authorities have moved with admirable alacrity to appoint her as a Tourism Ambassador, just as Barbados used Sir Garfield Sobers to power its tourism marketing campaign. Her stunning accomplishments will be memorialised through the erection of a statue and the renaming of a highway in her honour.
This is all well and good! But it’s the easy part and I daresay it won’t be enough to get where we must be. The real challenge lies in this question: how will WE use the lessons from Julien’s journey to drive much-needed transformative change in our country? Will we continue with our “muddling through” approach to personal and national development, or will we strive to emulate Julien’s example and establish clear goals and measurable objectives to drive our success? Will our budding sportsmen and women remain mindful of the unrelenting self-discipline that contributed to Juju’s success? Will they recognize that to excel, she forced herself to practice, even when she did not feel up to it; stick to a diet prescribed by her coach and nutritionist to help her build speed, strength and stamina; and shun fetes.
The manner of Julien’s success also carries lessons for our public and corporate governance. A principle, that we must embrace is to ensure that public and private investment in youth and sports must always exceed investment in entertainment events, like carnival. I say this not to knock carnival, which involves some creative input and helps to fill hotel rooms at a low point in the tourism season. However, we cannot now claim to be unaware of the significant returns that investing in youth and sports can bring. Just consider the boost that Julien has given to our tourism marketing. Still, we must be realistic and accept that while she can pull visitors to our shores, she cannot influence the experience they receive while they are with us. That’s the responsibility of all of us–not just those who work in the tourism sector-as all of us benefit in some way, shape or form from tourism.
To produce more successful elite athletes, cricketers, footballers, etc., we must urgently mainstream sports in the curriculum of our schools. Presently, sport is a fringe activity within the school system. Until the 1980s, it was an integral part of our lives. Now, amidst the welter of social distractions, only a handful of sports clubs exist, and sports facilities, even in schools, are underutilized.
It’s probably too much to expect that Juju’s success will turn this situation around. Still, I’m hoping it will spur a much-needed, national rethink.