PARIS, FRANCE (WTKR)- Grant Holloway dominated in the 110 meter hurdles during the Olympic Trials. It appears he's picking up right where he left off in Paris.
The Grassfield product cruised to a win in his preliminary heat in a time of 13.01 seconds Sunday morning, easily punching his ticket to Wednesday's Olympic semifinals. The closest competitor in any heat clocked 13.22 seconds, as Holloway further asserted himself as the gold medal favorite at the 2024 games.
Leroy Harper coached the Chesapeake native during his high school career with the Grizzlies and was up early watching his former athlete take the big stage. He said Sunday's performance was important after the layoff since the trials.
"He was very smooth," Harper noted. "I think he hit all the things that he was hoping that he would hit coming out of the blocks and getting a smooth start to the first three hurdles and then just continuing to stay consistent and keep his foot on the gas."
Watch previous coverage: Holloway punches ticket to Paris, wins Olympic Trials
Holloway is chasing the gold medal that eluded him during the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, where he would earn the silver. He appears to be clicking on all cylinders with two races separating him from the top of the podium. His personal best time of 12.81 seconds is just 0.01 off the world record and now he's one step closer to filling that vacant spot in his trophy case.
"It's in the back of his mind, but it's not the end-all, tell-all," Harper said of Holloway's silver medal and his quest for Olympic gold, noting that the focus is on doing the little things right. "I'm sure he wants to get that gold medal, but if it doesn't happen, that's one of those things. If you stay true to what you've been doing and continue to put in the work to do it, those things will fall in line and that medal is going to be his."
The Grassfield and Chesapeake communities are enjoying Holloway's success. Current Grizzly student-athletes are getting the chance to see a star who once walked and ran in their shoes reach the pinnacle of the sport and that's a valuable asset to the program.
"Just to see someone who was through the same program, walked through the same doors, trained on the same track, had the fortune to train with the same coach that he had in high school, it's great," the head coach remarked.
If all goes well, Harper and the Grizzlies could be among millions watching Holloway stand atop the podium as he has a gold medal placed around his neck Thursday. That's already crossed the coach's mind as he and the rest of the community await the next round with eager anticipation.
"I can feel the chills right now as we're sitting here talking about it," Harper smiled. "That's the one thing he doesn't have. That and the world record and both of those things are very, very achievable."
While an Olympic gold is something he has yet to achieve, Holloway has performed at his best on the world stage. He's won three consecutive World Championships, as well as two indoor World Championships in the 60 meter hurdles.
Next up for Holloway are the Olympic 110 meter high hurdle semifinals Wednesday at 1:05 PM Eastern Time.
