For most athletes, an Olympic medal is the finish line. For Junelle Bromfield, it became the beginning of a difficult realization. The Jamaican sprinter had spent nearly two decades chasing the dream she’d carried since childhood. But when she finally stood on the Olympic podium, the feeling she’d imagined never came.

Now, at just 28, the two-time Olympian has officially walked away from track and field, not because she couldn’t compete anymore, but because she discovered she was searching for something bigger than medals.

Speaking on PEOPLE’s WAG World with host Skyler Caruso, Bromfield opened up about the decision that surprised many. The bronze medal she won with Jamaica’s women’s 4x400m relay team at the Tokyo Olympics should have been the moment she’d dreamed about since she was eight years old. Instead, it left her with an unexpected emptiness.

“This was a dream that I’ve been chasing since I was eight. I got there at age 22, and for some reason it did not feel fulfilling. It didn’t feel like something that I waited all my life for, trained for, and worked for.”

Rather than walking away immediately, Bromfield convinced herself that perhaps the missing piece was an individual Olympic appearance. She poured everything into the next cycle and earned her own lane in the 400m at the Paris Olympics. But even before arriving in France, she already knew something had changed.

“I made it individually, got my own lane, and everything. But even before going, I was like, ‘Yeah, I don’t think this was really my dream anymore.’ So, I don’t think it amounted to what I expected.”

That realization didn’t happen overnight. It came after years of giving every part of herself to the sport.

Growing up in Jamaica, Bromfield always knew she had a natural gift for running. Unlike many young athletes today, however, she wasn’t raised in structured training programs.

“Honestly, we were just running around,” she recalled with a smile. “I feel as if it was just a gift from God, really, because I wasn’t training.”

It wasn’t until she later spent time in the United States that she realized how different youth athletics could be. Watching six-year-olds train with professional discipline made her appreciate how casually her own journey had started. Back home, running wasn’t about medals or scholarships. It was simply children enjoying themselves.

Like countless Jamaican youngsters, Bromfield grew up idolizing sprint legend Veronica Campbell-Brown. She still remembers waking up early to watch the 2004 Athens Olympics and seeing someone who looked like her standing on top of the podium.

That image stayed with her. Years later, she began turning potential into results. At Jamaica’s famous Boys and Girls Championships in 2016, Bromfield captured four gold medals, putting herself firmly on the country’s athletics radar. She later won bronze at the CARIFTA Games, where another rising teenage sprinter also happened to be making headlines.

His name was Noah Lyles.

At the time, Bromfield only knew of the American star by reputation.

“He was quite popular,” she laughed. “I wasn’t that popular.” Neither of them could have imagined that a friendship would eventually grow into a relationship, culminating in their wedding on April 4, 2026.

But while medals and milestones filled the headlines, life away from the track was becoming increasingly difficult. Bromfield revealed that athletics had consumed almost every aspect of her life from a young age. Living in dormitories since she was 11 meant she missed many of life’s ordinary moments with her growing family. As nieces and nephews took their first steps and started school, she often experienced those milestones through phone calls instead of in person.

The hardest chapter of her life came in 2021. While preparing for the Tokyo Olympics, Bromfield’s mother was diagnosed with cancer and later passed away. Because of training commitments, she could only visit her on weekends after making long commutes, something that still weighs heavily on her.

Looking back, Bromfield says retirement helped her understand there is far more to life than track and field. The sport had shaped her identity for years, but it no longer defined who she wanted to become.

Junelle Lyles reveals her newfound goals

Retirement hasn’t taken Bromfield away from athletics completely. These days, she’s often found cheering from the stands as Noah Lyles continues chasing history. Just last week, the reigning Olympic champion won his third U.S. title in the 100m, clocking a world-leading 9.79 seconds at the 2026 USATF Outdoor Championships in New York, a time that matched the mark he ran to win gold at the Paris Olympics.

Bromfield celebrated the moment just as enthusiastically. A day after the race, she shared an Instagram Reel dancing to Etana’s My Man, writing,

“Mood because my husband just won his 10th National title,” before adding another heartfelt message: “Proud of my husband ❤️🙏🏿.”

While she’s proudly embracing the role of Noah’s biggest supporter, Bromfield is equally excited about building something for herself away from the track. Announcing her retirement on WAG World, she revealed that creativity, not competition, is what excites her most now.

“My biggest passion right now is creating something that nobody has done before, like this podcast,” she said. “I’m like, ‘Okay, this is new, this is different.’ I want to do something like that. That’s my passion. I find it very interesting to bring something new to life.”

The Olympics gave Junelle Bromfield memories she’ll cherish forever. But for the first time since she was eight years old, she’s no longer chasing the next race or the next medal. She’s chasing a new dream, and this time, it has nothing to do with running.