757 Olympians: LaShawn Merritt blazed a path from Portsmouth to gold in Beijing

The Olympics have begun this week in Paris, and the opening ceremonies are Friday. So we are looking back at some athletes from Hampton Roads who won gold on the world’s biggest stage. Earlier, we profiled Pernell “Sweet Pea” Whitaker , Gabby Douglas and Thompson Mann . Visit pilotonline.com or dailypress.com and search 757 Olympians.

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LaShawn Merritt was the underdog, but he didn’t look like it after less than a minute in the 400-meter dash at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

In a mere 43.75 seconds, Merritt, a 22-year-old Portsmouth native, defeated defending Olympic champion Jeremy Wariner by nearly a second and became the second South Hampton Roads native to claim an Olympic gold medal in an individual event, following boxer Pernell “Sweet Pea” Whitaker in 1984.

“I had a game plan going into the finals,” Merritt, a Wilson High grad, told The Pilot’s Larry Rubama by telephone the morning after the race. “And I knew if I stuck to it that it would be a great race.”

Wariner and fellow American David Neville took the early lead, but Merritt used his long and powerful strides to catch them and pull away in the final 100 meters.

“I knew I had the race once I came off the turn,” Merritt said. “When I had 50 meters left, that’s when I normally see (Wariner), but when I peeked over I didn’t see anybody. From there, I just tried to stay relaxed and cross the finish line first.

“After crossing the finish line, I was thinking, ‘I won, I won.’ But then I started walking and I thought, ‘I just won the Olympics.’ It’s an incredible feeling. It was kind of overwhelming for a minute.”

Merritt had signed a four-year, $2 million endorsement contract with Nike after leaving East Carolina. But an Olympic gold medal “will definitely open up doors,” Merritt said.

Postscript

Merritt won a second gold medal in Beijing with the 4×400 relay team and in 2016 at the Rio de Janeiro Games won bronze in the 400 and gold in the 4×400. His career was interrupted by a 21-month suspension for using a banned substance — a steroid that was legally sold over the counter as a dietary supplement. Merritt retired from competition in 2017 as one of the most decorated athletes at the World Championships (11 medals, including eight gold). He was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame earlier this year.

This year’s 757 Olympians

UNITED STATES

• Leah Crouse, field hockey (Virginia Beach)
• Justin Dowell, cycling/BMX (Virginia Beach)
• Grant Holloway, track and field (Chesapeake)
• Quincy Wilson, track and field (Chesapeake)

NIGERIA

• Edose Ibadin, track and field (Hampton University)
• Chidi Okezie, track and field (Hampton University)