Incredible Olympian: 16-Year-Old Set To Become Youngest U.S. Male Track Star

Contributor - Ryan Straub A rising junior at Potomac, Maryland’s Bullis School will be an Olympian after receiving the phone call of his life Sunday night. Quincy, Wilson, at just 16 years of age, will break history in Paris this summer by becoming the youngest male track Olympian to compete for the United States in an Olympic Games. A Dream Come True The news culminated in a vision and dream that Wilson had during the Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon. In an interview with ESPN, Wilson said “I was dreaming about it when I was in Oregon about to do my third run. I dreamed about being an Olympian, It was just being on that Olympic stage, holding that gold medal, and things like that. “When you dream about it a lot, it does come true when you put your work to it."  Inspired By Previous Olympians There are many household names regarding the history of track and field in the Olympics, especially on the Men’s side. Some that come to mind include the great Jamaican Olympians of the mid-2010s such as Johan Blake, Michael Frater, and of course Usain Bolt. Wilson aims to be like notable Americans Michael Johnson, Jesse Owens, Carl Lewis, and more recently Justin Gatlin. These are the men Wilson gained his inspiration from, telling ESPN "I remember I see Justin Gatlin and Usain Bolt go head-to-head and I was just like, 'I want to be up there one day,' Wilson said. "And I told my mom, dad, and now, it's the dream come true." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQOw8LF5SM4 The 4x100 Relay at the 2012 Summer Games in London is regarded as one of the best races of all time. Earned Through Impressive Times Wilson qualified for the relay pool last week after winning three different 400-meter heats in under 45 seconds. Two days later, in the preliminary round 400-meter semifinal, he set yet another under-18 world record time, smashing the previous one that had stood for 42 years. Incredibly, Wilson broke a 42 year old record twice in three days. Wilson, who finished sixth in the finals with a time of 44.94 seconds, failed to qualify for the Olympics in the event the following day. Even after this, some in the sport begged for him to be included in the relay pool in the days that followed.  Wilson twice raced in sub 45 seconds in the 4x400-meter heats for his team in the local Penn Relays, the oldest and biggest track and field event in the United States, which is held annually at Franklin Field in Philadelphia by the University of Pennsylvania since 1895. In one race, he ran an anchor leg in 44.37 seconds, a Penn Relays record for the high school 400-meter. Remember The Name The Summer 2024 Paris Olympics are set to begin Friday, July 26 in what will be the first non-COVID-effected games since Rio 2016. It is only then that his dream of being an Olympian will officially come true, and with Track and Field being one of the more popular sports due to the intense thrill and anticipation of fast and exciting races, Quincy Wilson will certainly be a name to look out for. Listen to The Andie Summers Show weekdays from 5:30 - 10am on 92.5 XTU!