Track star Quincy Wilson, 16, is not eligible to compete in the 400 metres in the Olympics

Quincy Wilson, 16, a rising star in TrackTown, USA, missed qualifying for the 2024 Olympic Games by a tiny margin after finishing sixth in the men’s 400-metre final on Monday night at Hayward Field.

With a breathtaking personal best time of 44.17 seconds, Quincy Hall won the race, and the race favourite, Michael Norman, finished in second place with a timing of 44.41 seconds. Norman was closely followed by Chris Bailey, who recorded a personal best time of 44.42 seconds.

Wilson, the Washington, D.C., sprinting phenom, created waves last Friday when he smashed a 42-year-old high school record and broke the under-18 world record with a scorching 44.66 in the 400-meter first round.

After that, on Sunday, he improved to 44.59 in the semifinals to guarantee his place in the finals and pursue his goal of becoming the youngest male member of the American Olympic track team in history. Wilson is upbeat despite Monday’s result, viewing his accomplishments as evidence of his tenacity and promise.

“All I know is that I gave it everything I had, therefore, I can’t possibly be let down. I’m sixteen running grown man times at the end of the day.” Wilson was quoted as saying by usatoday.com

There is talk of Athing of joining Team USA’s 4×400 relay roster. The athlete has humorously acknowledged the unpredictable nature of USATF’s selections. “You never know with USATF,” Mu joked, expressing her surprise at the procedure and remarking, “This is all new to me.”

“They could take somebody from the 100, 200, or 800,” she remarked in jest. They can take anybody they want to take,” she said, adding: “As far as I know, they could take a long jumper.” Her comments demonstrate her willingness to perform any task the team assigns her.

Teen prodigy Wilson draws attention and gets acclaim from stars

Wilson has made a name for himself in the track world, even though he is still a novice and is competing against athletes twice his age and stature. Snoop Dogg and Deion Sanders both gave him positive feedback on social media. After the semi-finals, Norman described the teen’s performance as “spectacular”.

“We should all be proud of young talents like him who push us to step outside of our comfort zones and run a bit faster. His future seems promising, in my opinion.” Norman was quoted as saying by USAToday.