16-year-old Quincy Wilson becomes youngest American male track Olympian ever
Running sensation Quincy Wilson, 16, is going to the Paris Olympics, becoming the youngest American male to be part of the Olympic track team.
Wilson, who will be on the 4x400 relay pool, posted on his social media about the selection, with the caption: "WE GOING TO THE OLYMPICS." On Monday, he posted a photo with the official uniform with the "USA" emblazoned on it on his Instagram Story.
A rising high school junior at Bullis School in Potomac, Maryland, Wilson made it all the way to the final of the 400-meter final at the U.S. Olympic trials in Eugene, Oregon, on June 24. He finished sixth in the race, which kept his Olympics hopes alive. Despite his final position, he said he was "so thankful" to be part of it.
Wilson will join track stars Quincy Hall, Michael Norman and Chris Bailey, who all finished ahead of him in the 400-meter final at U.S. trials, in Paris.
En route to the race, he beat the world's under-18 400-meter record twice – surpassing his own record in the semifinal on June 23 and breaking the record two days earlier.
Bill Mallon, an Olympics historian, told CBS News that Wilson is the youngest male track Olympian to make the U.S. team. The youngest ever track and field American athlete is Esther Stroy, who competed at the age of 15 in the 1968 Olympics, Mallon told CBS News.
Wilson's Olympic bid comes as big names in Team USA such as Simone Biles and Suni Lee punched their tickets to the City of Love over the weekend.
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Christopher Brito is a social media manager and trending content writer for CBS News.