Quincy Wilson became the youngest Olympian in U.S. history on Friday when the 16-year-old led the men’s 4×400-meter team at the Paris Olympics.
But the Americans ultimately had to overcome their rocky start and fight their way back on the second leg behind 32-year-old Vernon Norwood, who ran a leg of 43.60 to bring the U.S. men back into the race.
Bryce Deadmon (27) and Chris Bailey (24) finished third with a time of 2:59.15 and a place in the team qualification.
“I was with a great team,” Wilson said in the mixed zone afterward. “I had them on my side the whole game. You know, I wasn’t 100 percent fit, but my team came here and did it for me.”
Wilson completed the first leg in 47.30, Norwood in 43.60, Deadmon in 44.20 and Bailey finished the Americans’ race in 44.05.
The Americans achieved the third-best time in the preliminary rounds on Friday, behind Botswana with 2:57.76 and Great Britain with 2:58.88. France, Nigeria and Belgium advanced in the second round.
“I was right there in that moment with a 16-year-old running in the Olympics and making history,” Norwood said. “I was very proud of him. I just looked at him and thought, ‘Oh, come back in, let me grab the racket and go.’ I’m super proud of him for coming out here and showing his determination for us, the United States.
“I told him before we went there,” Norwood added. “I said, ‘Embrace it. You belong here. This is a privilege. No one else in the world gets this chance, so make the most of it.'”
Botswana, on the other hand, surprised everyone by fielding the newly crowned 200-meter Olympic champion Letsile Tebogo for the opening race.
But in the end, the switch proved to be a brilliant strategy, as the team used Tebogo’s 44.40 to win the race in 2:57.27.
Japan and Zambia also qualified in the first heat.
Trinidad and Tobago also had a high school student in its ranks. Jadan Marchan, a recent graduate of Leonia High School in New Jersey, ran a time of 45.63 minutes and the Caribbean country finished with a time of 3:06.73.
Wilson had some promise in his debut on Friday.
“This will be a motivation for me to come back and give my team a better chance than today,” he said.
When will the 2024 Olympic Games take place in Paris?
The Olympic Games begin on July 26 and end on August 11. The athletics competitions began on August 1.
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