McKenzie Long from Ironton on her way to the Olympic Games
Published 23:33 Saturday, June 29, 2024
By JIM WALKER
EUGENE, OR – Yes, I need a ticket to Paris and I need to be there before July 26th.
Ironton native McKenzie Long is part of the U.S. Olympic track and field team’s travel preparations after qualifying for the Summer Olympics in Paris with her third-place finish in the 200-meter dash.
McKenzie Long
Long finished third in the semifinals on Friday with a time of 22.01 seconds.
Long surpassed that time with a time of 21.91 in the Olympic qualifying final on Saturday.
The race was extremely close: Gabby Thomas won with a time of 21.81, followed by Brittany Brown with 21.90, just one hundredth of a second ahead of Long.
Sha’Carri Richardson, who won the 100-meter race, finished second in the semifinals with a time of 21.92 seconds, but fourth in the final with a time of 22.16 seconds.
Tamara Clark finished fifth with 22.20 seconds, Abby Steiner sixth with 22.24 seconds, Jenna Prandini seventh with 22.58 seconds and Jadyn Mays eighth with 22.60 seconds.
A total of 35 sprinters competed in the preliminary rounds, but only the last three runners qualified for the Olympic team.
Long ran the fastest 200-meter time of 21.83 seconds this year to win the NCAA Championships, also held in Eugene on June 8.
