The 2024 Gyulai István Memorial, held at Budapest’s iconic National Athletics Centre, delivered another thrilling night of elite sprint competition on Tuesday, marked by a dominant sixth straight victory for Saint Lucia’s star sprinter Julien Alfred in the women’s 100m. Competing under warm, dry conditions against a gentle -0.3 m/s headwind, Alfred clocked a 2024 season-best time of 10.87 seconds to secure the top spot on the podium.
Jamaica’s rising sprint talent Tina Clayton, 2023 World Championships silver medalist in the event, got off to one of the fastest starts of the field, putting her ahead of the pack through the first 30 meters. But Alfred, whose consistent top form has made her one of the most formidable sprinters on the global circuit this year, quickly closed the gap, powering through the final stretch to cross the line first. This win marks Alfred’s sixth consecutive 100m victory of the outdoor season, cementing her status as one of the favorites for major upcoming championships.
Clayton held on to finish second with a time of 10.97 seconds, while another Jamaican sprinter Brianna Lyston claimed third place in 11.01 seconds. Multiple Olympic gold medalist Elaine Thompson-Herah of Jamaica finished just outside the top three, 0.03 seconds behind Lyston to take fourth place.
In another key sprint event at the Budapest meet, American sprinter Gabby Thomas took top honors in the women’s 200m, crossing the line in 21.83 seconds. Thomas’s performance follows her 21.84-second run at the Diamond League meet in Monaco just one week prior. In that same Monaco 200m, Alfred delivered a historic blistering run of 21.51 seconds to win, a time that ranks as the third-fastest women’s 200m ever recorded in the history of the sport.
The Budapest results have set the stage for a highly anticipated rematch between Alfred and Thomas this coming weekend, when the two elite sprinters will go head-to-head once again at the London Diamond League meet, leaving track fans eager to see if Alfred can extend her winning streak against one of the world’s top 200m runners.