This Homecoming, Terps can celebrate their Maryland pride with red, white, black and a little extra gold.
Triple jumper Thea LaFond-Gadson ’15, who won the first Olympic gold medal for her home country of Dominica in this summer’s Paris Olympics, and basketball player Alyssa Thomas ’14, who helped Team USA reach the top of the podium for the eighth straight time, will serve as Homecoming grand marshals. Back for the first time in over a decade, the honorary position invites notable alums, leaders and other dignitaries to act as points of pride and inspiration for the UMD community during the week of festivities.
The two champions join an esteemed list of past grand marshals, including Muppets creator Jim Henson ’60, Kermit the Frog and Sweetums (1979), former Maryland Gov. Harry Hughes ’49 (1985) and fellow Olympian gymnast Dominique Dawes ’02 (2003).
“You think about what Homecoming really is, and how it’s the melting pot and true welcome back of generations,” LaFond-Gadson said. “To be the symbol of that and to know that it’ll be a time of joy and happiness on campus, it’s really special.”
LaFond-Gadson, who moved to Maryland at age 7, starred on the field at UMD, setting the highest women’s triple jump score in program history (44-02.75) and several other top-five finishes across jump and hurdle events. She was named an All-American and the 2015 Big Ten Field Athlete of the Year.
Professionally, her career highlights include earning silver at the 2022 Commonwealth Games and bronze in 2018. In March, she won the triple jump title at the 2024 World Indoor Championships, posting a then-national record of 15.01 meters to become the first title holder representing the Caribbean island nation of Dominica. That put her in prime position for Paris, where she leapt to a mark of 15.02 meters to earn her country’s first Olympic medal.
“It was a bit surreal,” she said. “You make this plan, and you go in and you end up executing this plan, and you get not only a great outcome, but the best possible outcome in the world. It took a while for it to even hit.”
Thomas, who played for the Terps from 2010-14, is UMD’s all-time leader in scoring with 2,356 career points and 1,235 rebounds. She was an All-American…
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