iShowSpeed has been warned about how tough it is to qualify for the US Olympic team.
The YouTube and Twitch star narrowly lost a 50m dash to Olympic 100m Champion Noah Lyles, which was livestreamed.
The race was much closer than many would have anticipated, given Lyles is also a World Champion at the event.
It prompted Speed, real name Darren Watkins, to claim that he wants to compete at the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles over both 100m and 200m distances. Speed acknowledged that the 50m dash is not an official Olympic event.
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However, it will be an uphill battle for the social media star to post the times necessary.
Team USA is home to some of the fastest sprinters on the planet and the Olympic athletics trials are notoriously competitive as a result. The qualification time for the 100m for Paris 2024 was a stunning 9.88 seconds.
Christian Coleman, who is a World Record holder over 60m but also competes at 100m and 200m, narrowly missed out on qualifying for the Paris Games over both distances.
He came fourth in the US trials in both races, although he did make the 4x100m relay team.
Speed claimed never to have heard of Coleman, but when Lyles explained who the sprinter was, Speed also challenged him to a race.
Coleman is not the only example of how difficult it is to qualify for the Olympic Games – especially for the US team.
Sha’Carri Richardson also missed out on qualifying for the 200m for the Paris Games after finishing fourth in the US trials in Oregon. Richardson claimed Olympic silver in the 100m event and was a Bronze medallist in the 200m in the World Championships in 2023.
In addition, Speed would have to put in some serious training to even make the trials themselves. The USA Track and Field committee set three key requirements for Olympic eligibility, including being a US citizen and to be a USA Track and Field member in the year of the Olympics.
The third requirement is posting times from indoor and outdoor events – meaning Speed would have to compete against other athletes in sanctioned competitions to even reach the trials.
Topics: Olympics, US Sports, IShowSpeed, Athletics
Alex Chivers