Social media erupted Tuesday after a man bit Julien Alfred’s Olympic gold medal during her homecoming celebration in St Lucia. The athlete, fresh off her history-making performance at the Paris Olympics in August, wore the medal around her neck as part of the festivities.
The man, going by the name Malahkee Jeanba on Facebook, was live on his Facebook page when Julien Alfred’s motorcade was making its way through Vieux Fort.
Excited to see Alfred in person, Jeanaba asked Alfred if he could "touch the gold" and then bit it. Since then, many have aired their views on social media condemning the act.
The practice of biting gold medals has become a sporting tradition. Photographers, in pursuit of that perfect shot, often ask athletes to pose with their medals in their mouths. The resulting image has become symbolic of triumph and celebration, often used to immortalize the moment in media coverage for years to come.
This year, an athlete from North Korea who placed second, bit her medal after seeing other athletes do the same.
Since the social media outrage, Jeanba has responded to his detractors in another now-viral social media video. He says he is an avid sporting and Olympics fan and has observed the practice being done for years.
“Y’all only started watching Olympics as Julien Alfred won the gold… y’all never watched Olympics in the 90s, in the 80s. You never see the Olympians biting the medals? The coach bites the medal, their mother, sister, anybody in their country biting the medal?” he said.
Jeanba says those outraged at his act are only jealous of him. “They’re jealous because they never tasted the gold. They’re hating on me,” he jeered at his critics.
Prior to winning two Olympic medals, Alfred won a gold medal in the 60 metres at the 2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships, also a first for St Lucia.
At the Olympics, she ran the 100-metre race in 10.72 seconds, beating favourite Sha’Carri Richardson and dedicating the win to her father.
Earlier this month, Alfred also won the women’s 100 metres during the Diamond League final 2024 athletics meet in Brussels.
The celebration for Alfred on the island of 238 square miles (617 square kilometres) is expected to continue for at least two more days, with a rally scheduled for Wednesday and a visit to a primary school on Thursday.
September 27 will be observed as Julien Alfred Day in St Lucia, in honour of the 23-year-old known as “JuJu”.
