SAINT-DENIS, France — Rock Island alum Courtney Lindsey anchored Team USA in the men's 4x100 relay during the 2024 Paris Olympics.
His leg time was just 8.88 seconds, the fastest out of all four members. Team USA took first place at 37.47 seconds and qualified for finals. South Africa came in second place at 37.94.
The medal race will take place at 12:45 p.m. CT on Friday, Aug. 9.
The 25-year-old graduated from Rock Island High School in 2018 before attending Texas Tech University. His former track coach, Ed Lillis, was thrilled but not surprised by Lindsey's recent success.
"He was always just really quiet and confident, worked hard," Lillis said. "Never complained about anything. Just kept his nose to the grindstone and led by example. In practice, he'd be in front of the whole group or whatever we were doing. He put in the time, the dedication, the effort, the role model, the leadership. Nothing bad to say about that young man."
In between all his training, News 8 caught up with Lindsey a few weeks before the Olympics.
When asked what advice he would give to current high school athletes who are hoping to compete in the biggest athletic event in the world, he told them that the sky's the limit.
"Just stay focused and dream big. I would say anything is possible, and if you actually want to achieve something, keep striving for it. You can do it," Lindsey said.
"You know when you see something special and he was that right off the bat," Lillis added. "There was one headline in the paper about him that said 'a quiet champion' and that's what he was. He was a champion in everything he did and didn't draw attention to himself at all."
Lindsey wasn't the only Olympian Rock Island had its eyes on today. Rock Island Center for Math and Science held a watch party for Principal John Hawley's son-in-law. Freddie Crittenden competed in the 110 high hurdles today, placing sixth.
