As it turns out, Quincy Wilson will get his chance to shine at the Paris Olympics.
The 16-year-old phenom from Bullis School in Maryland was chosen to run the lead leg of Team USA’s men’s 4×400 relay team in Friday’s qualifying round.
Wilson will be the youngest male American athlete to compete in a track and field event when he takes the baton at Stade de France.
His 44.94 breakout performance in the 400m a trials in Eugene, Oregon in July was a sixth place finish, but enough to earn him a slot in the relay pool for Paris.
“When I got the call, I was ecstatic,” Wilson said. “It was just a moment for me because everybody dreams about going to the Olympics as a young kid.”
Wilson was not selected to be part of the team’s mixed relay squad, which broke a world record on Friday during qualifying but took silver the next day in the final. There was no guarantee he would see any Olympic action but remained in the available pool of runners for the 4×100 and 4×400 races.
His mother announced on social media that he would not run on the mixed relay, but Wilson continue to post encouraging messages on his own account in a sign that he would be prepared in case he was selected from the relay pool.
Now on the biggest stage, Wilson has remained in the spotlight because of his age and also his string of sub-45 second performances during competition this year.
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