RAYTOWN, Mo. – While Maurice Mitchell’s goal was to run as fast as he could and stay on his feet while he rounded the track at the Olympic trials in Eugene, Oregon, the 200 meter sprinter immediately fell to his knees when it was all over.
“I just thank God,” he said. “You know I trusted in Him and came out here and competed the best I could. I’m just thankful to go to London.”
Maurice, an eight time state champion for Raytown South, is heading to London to compete in 200 meter dash and work towards a spot on the relay team for the 2012 Olympics.
“That was big time,” said his former high school track coach, Tom Lester. “We sat there and reflected on the Olympic trials, the experiences he had at Florida State and the experiences he had here at Raytown South. That’s Maurice Mitchell in a nutshell. Chicken wings, pizza, in his hotel room, with me. Whoopee.”
Lester joined Maurice in Oregon. He plans to attend the Olympic games as well.
“It was great to see Maurice and his development and see him perform and do what he was supposed to do,” said the coach. “So, it was not shocking to me when he ran the semi finals, I said he’s going to make the Olympic team.”
Now Lester’s preparing for London where he hopes to watch the Maurice take home a medal — preferably in Gold, though he says silver or bronze will do.
