SPOKANE, Wash. — The 2024 Summer Olympics are quickly approaching, and one cross-country runner from Spokane is competing for a spot to run alongside the best in the world.
Wil Smith runs for the Track and Cross Country team at Gonzaga University, and on Friday, June 21, he will be running at the 10K Meter Dash USA Track and Field Trials, competing for a spot in the 2024 Summer Olympics.
Smith grew up running all of his life here in Spokane, falling in love with competing and training in each race since he got to GU four years ago.
Smith got a qualifying time earlier this season to get him in the trial. Smith will compete against 24 athletes, where only the top 3 will run for Team USA this summer.
As he's getting ready for the race, Smith says he's excited to represent Spokane, a city he says takes the sport of track and field to heart.
"The high school [track and field] scene in Spokane has had a really rich history of distant runners, and I think that gives people a lot of pride, so they're super excited to see people compete in big stages like this," Smith said. "So I've been lucky to receive a lot of support from that, and that's something I'm really grateful for."
The 10K Olympic Trials are on Friday at 7:27 p.m. in Eugene, Oregon. The live results will be available at gozags.com.
Smith has one year left at GU, getting ready to start his fifth year as a double-major in human physiology and psychology.
DOWNLOAD THE KREM SMARTPHONE APP
DOWNLOAD FOR IPHONE HERE | DOWNLOAD FOR ANDROID HERE
HOW TO ADD THE KREM+ APP TO YOUR STREAMING DEVICE
ROKU: add the channel from the ROKU store or by searching for KREM in the Channel Store.
Fire TV: search for "KREM" to find the free app to add to your account. Another option for Fire TV is to have the app delivered directly to your Fire TV through Amazon.
To report a typo or grammatical error, please email webspokane@krem.com.