Last week, Gilbert senior Vance Nilsson said he was "still trying to figure out the" 400-meter hurdles. Nilsson, who set the U.S. high school national record in the 300-meter hurdles in May, has been doing the longer distance for only about five weeks.
Still figuring it out on the fly, the 18-year-old just qualified for the semifinals of the men's 400-meter hurdles at the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials.
It was only weeks ago that Nilsson received his high school diploma. Friday, he'll run for a chance to compete in the final for a spot at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Nilsson ran 50.13 seconds — a personal best — to finish second in his heat at the Olympic Trials. Overall, Nilsson finished sixth out of 32 competitors to secure his place in the semifinals. He was in Lane 9 for the race, just ahead of Texas Tech's Caleb Dean, who just won the NCAA championship in the event. Dean was first in the heat at 49.45.
The semifinals are 6:16 p.m. Friday. The field will be cut from 27 to nine for the final on Sunday.
Also qualifying for the semifinals was Nilsson's AZ Flames club teammate, James Smith II, who ran 50.28 to finish seventh overall.
Nilsson will have a shot Friday at breaking his second national record of 49.38, which was set in 2002 by Kenneth Ferguson.
"Having to run blindly the way he was and still running so well against a world-class field — that was very impressive," NBC commentator and Olympic gold medalist Sanya Richards-Ross said on the broadcast.
Logan Stanley is a sports reporter with The Arizona Republic who primarily focuses on high school, ASU and Olympic sports. To suggest ideas for human-interest stories and other news, reach out to Stanley at logan.stanley@gannett.com or 707-293-7650. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter:@LSscribe.
Most Popular
Comments / 0