Can you smell that?
A building excitement...the faint waft of expectation and glory in the in the air...great performances hinting even greater performances to come this summer...yes, it's starting to feel like an Olympic year (again).
While the Olympics are not 100% a go yet, they're starting to feel more and more real. And it would be a shame if we didn't get them after the performances we've seen in recent weeks.
Last weekend, 10 athletes hit Olympic standards at the TEN in California, a feat dozens of distance runners will attempt to replicate this weekend in Austin. We've got conference championships galore in indoor track, followed by the Euro Indoor champs next weekend. And then there's the guy waving at the top of this newsletter.
Grant Holloway, in case you haven't noticed, is having a moment. On Wednesday in Madrid, the 23-year-old capped a historic season by breaking his first world record, clocking 7.29 in the 60-meter hurdles to take down Colin Jackson's 27-year-old mark. It doesn't feel as if it will be his last.
Olympics birth superstars, and few seem better poised to take advantage of the spotlight than Holloway. Massive personality? Check. Massive charisma? Check. Massive talent? Check. A win in Tokyo this summer could make Grant Holloway a name that resounds beyond track & field circles.
The sport still has a few hurdles between now and a successful Olympics, though. Here's hoping that, like Holloway, we clear them.
