There are so many amazing stories coming out of the Track & Field Olympic Trials.  So many hopes and dreams to wear the Team USA threads and represent this nation in the “city of lights” at the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris.

One of those stories is that of Cordell Tinch.  A Wisconsin native with Kansas ties. You see, Cordell is a Gorilla, an alum of Pittsburg State, which has his entire school and many in Kansas cheering loud for this young man.  This unlikely hurdler, just a few years ago was selling cell phones, delivering furniture and operating machines to make toilet paper during the pandemic, just to pay the bills.

Cordell is not the only Gorilla looking for success in the 110M hurdles semi-finals.  Louis Rollins from the class of 2021 is also running in the semi-finals with the same hopes and dreams as Cordell.  The goal is to get to Paris.

He returned to the track in 2023 where he shocked the world by running faster than anyone else in the world that year in the 110M hurdles. Now, he is just a couple races away from the Olympics. His semi-final race is Thursday and there will be three semifinals with seven runners each. The top two finishers from each semifinal, as well as the next three fastest from the entire remaining field, advance to the finals on Friday.  Watch out world, Cordell is ready to shock the world again, and surprise a lot of people, because that’s what he does, and I’ll be watching and cheering him on.