Thea LaFond (Dominica) made history by becoming the first Dominican to win a medal at a global athletics competition when she won the gold medal in the triple jump at the World Indoor Athletics Championships in Glasgow, Scotland. She has made history again, winning the gold medal in the triple jump at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
The 30-year-old LaFond is a graduate of John F. Kennedy High School in Silver Spring. She has also been a substitute teacher in Montgomery County Public Schools while representing Dominica. After her time as a student at Kennedy, she continued her athletic and educational career at the University of Maryland in College Park where she set the highest ever women’s triple jump score in school history (44-02.75), a record that still stands today.
LaFond earned gold with a 15.02m jump, finishing ahead of Shanika Ricketts (14.87m, Jamaica) and Jasmine Moore (14.67m, USA). Six years ago, she became the first Dominican athlete to ever win a medal for her country in the competition, earning a bronze medal in the Triple Jump at the 2018 Commonwealth games.
In an interview with Moderately MoCo just before the Olympic Games, she stated that she started running in her freshman year of high school at Kennedy, “I originally didn’t want to do track, but my friends pushed me.” Previously, LaFond did ballet and volleyball, which is where she said she learned her self-criticism and discipline, per the interview.
Huge congratulations to John K. Kennedy Alum, Thea LAFOND!!! Gold medal in the triple jump!! So very proud! Always been relentless!! @athletics_jfk @mcpsAD pic.twitter.com/qjnQbNFsqo
— Blair Athletics (@BlairAthletics) August 3, 2024