"Paris was frustrating for me"- Dina Asher-Smith opens up Olympic heartbreak after finishing 2nd behind training partner Julien Alfred at Brussels DL

By Soumik Bhattacharya

Modified Sep 14, 2024 03:19 GMT

Three-time Olympic medalist Dina Asher-Smith recently reflected on her solid performance during the first day of the 2024 Diamond League finals in Brussels. This comes just a month after her 2024 Paris Olympics debacle, where she couldn't even advance past the semifinal stages of the women's 100m event.

However, competing in the Brussels Diamond League, the British track and field athlete produced an impressive performance and clinched the second position on the podium after clocking 10.92 seconds.

Asher-Smith finished just behind her training partner and 100m Olympic champion, Julien Alfred in the competition who added another victory to her 2024 track and field season after taking 10.88 seconds to finish the race. Ivorian track and field athlete Marie-Josee Ta Lou-Smith finished third after clocking 11.05 seconds.

This was Asher-Smith's third successive Diamond League podium after the Paris Olympics, having previously triumphed in Lausanne while finishing third in Zurich. Following her impressive performance at the Belgian capital, the British sprinter opened up about her thought process before and during the race while also reflecting on her Paris Olympics disappointment.

Dina Asher-Smith revealed during a post-match interview that her performance in the finals was quite satisfying for her. Besides, the British athlete also shared some kind words for winner Julien Alfred during the conversation.

She stated (via Athletics Weekly):

"It was a good race. Julien (Julien Alfred) is an incredible competitor and she is my training partner so it was nice to go one-two here but yeah it was a good run. .

Asher-Smith further added:

"Paris was frustrating for me and obviously we can see I was in better shape there but we know exactly what I did wrong. So I was just able to quickly rectify it and I am very happy to be able to have done that. It sucks but I was glad to rectify it. So bar one day, this has been a good year."

Dina Asher-Smith finished third at the Zurich Diamond League 2024

Dina Asher-Smith during the relay event of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris (Image via Getty)

Competing in her second Diamond League event after the 2024 Paris Olympics, Dina Asher-Smith clinched the third position on the podium at the Zurich Diamond League 2024.

The 28-year-old touched the finishing line in 10.89 seconds just behind 100m Paris Olympic medalists Sha'Carri Richardson and Julien Alfred who finished in the first and second positions with run times of 10.84 and 10.88 seconds respectively.

This impressive performance in the Zurich event came after Asher-Smith's heroics at the Lausanne meet where she recorded her season-best run time over the 100m distance (10.88 seconds) and won the event.