Gray’s Creek Alum Quanera Hayes Back in Olympics After Qualifying for Paris
There’s fast, and then there’s Olympic fast. And for the second straight Olympic Games, Gray’s Creek High School alum Quanera Hayes is the latter, as she has qualified for the…
Quanera Hayes, a Gray’s Creek High School graduate, will be a member of Team USA in the Paris Olympics.
Photo by Maja Hitij/Getty ImagesThere's fast, and then there's Olympic fast. And for the second straight Olympic Games, Gray's Creek High School alum Quanera Hayes is the latter, as she has qualified for the Paris Olympics.
Hayes notably had previously made the US Olympic Team for the rescheduled 2021 Tokyo Games, after a stunning upset in the women's 400m final at the U.S. Olympic trials in 2001. She is a 2010 Gray's Creek graduate, and Hope Mills native.
This time around, Hayes qualified as a member of the women's 4x400 relay pool. It doesn't guarantee her a competing spot, but she is on the list of eligible runners.
Hayes made her way to the finals of the women's 400 in Tokyo, where she finished seventh.
Joining Hayes in Paris will also be Army Captain Sammy Sullivan, a Jack Britt graduate, who will compete for Team USA as a member of the Women's Rugby Sevens quad.
The Paris Olympics begin on Friday, July 26 and the first round of the women's 4x400 that Hayes would potentially be eligible for is on Friday, August 9.
Opening Ceremonies for the Games will be held along the Seine River - instead of in a stadium as most other Olympics have done - and will be broadcast live at 1:30 p.m. on Friday, July 26, with an encore on NBC that night.
Quanera Hayes competes in the women's 400 meter final on Day Three 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Trials Track & Field at Hayward Field on June 23, 2024 in Eugene, Oregon.
Hilarious Photos From Tokyo Olympics Pole Vaulting Competition
Pole vaulting has quickly become one of the best competitions in the Olympics for one reason and one reason only: getting to see the vaulters' wacky expressions as they launch themselves off the ground.
There have been plenty of memes going around to fully grasp this newly found comedy in the world of professional athletes. We have compiled our favorite expressions and bodies that gave us the giggles below.
Team Ukraine
Cameron Spencer/Getty ImagesMaryna Kylypko of Team Ukraine reacts in the Women's Pole Vault qualification on day ten of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on August 02, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team Britain
Ryan Pierse/Getty ImagesHolly Bradshaw of Team Great Britain reacts as she wins the bronze medal in the Women's Pole Vault Final on day thirteen of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on August 05, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team Brazil
Patrick Smith/Getty ImagesAugusto Dutra of Team Brazil competes in the Men's Pole Vault Qualification on day eight of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on July 31, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team France
Richard Heathcote/Getty ImagesEthan Cormont of Team France competes in the Men's Pole Vault Qualification on day eight of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on July 31, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team France
Maja Hitij/Getty ImagesRenaud Lavillenie of Team France competes in the Men's Pole Vault Qualification on day eight of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on July 31, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team France
Patrick Smith/Getty ImagesValentin Lavillenie of Team France competes in the Men's Pole Vault Qualification on day eight of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on July 31, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team Greece
Cameron Spencer/Getty ImagesKaterina Stefanidi of Team Greece competes in the Women's Pole Vault Final on day thirteen of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on August 05, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team Germany
Patrick Smith/Getty ImagesBo Kanda Lita Baehre of Team Germany competes in the Men's Pole Vault Qualification on day eight of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on July 31, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team Norway
Maja Hitij/Getty ImagesSondre Guttormsen of Team Norway competes in the Men's Pole Vault Qualification on day eight of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on July 31, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team Sweden
Patrick Smith/Getty ImagesArmand Duplantis of Team Sweden competes in the Men's Pole Vault Qualification on day eight of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on July 31, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team Japan
Maja Hitij/Getty ImagesMasaki Ejima of Team Japan competes in the Men's Pole Vault Qualification on day eight of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on July 31, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team Poland
Patrick Smith/Getty ImagesRobert Sobera of Team Poland competes in the Men's Pole Vault Qualification on day eight of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on July 31, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team France
Richard Heathcote/Getty ImagesEthan Cormont of Team France competes in the Men's Pole Vault Qualification on day eight of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on July 31, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team Great Britain
Maja Hitij/Getty ImagesHarry Coppell of Team Great Britain competes in the Men's Pole Vault Qualification on day eight of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on July 31, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team Poland
Richard Heathcote/Getty ImagesPiotr Lisek of Team Poland competes in the Men's Pole Vault Qualification on day eight of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on July 31, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team France
Patrick Smith/Getty ImagesValentin Lavillenie of Team France competes in the Men's Pole Vault Qualification on day eight of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on July 31, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team Poland
Patrick Smith/Getty ImagesRobert Sobera of Team Poland reacts as he competes in the Men's Pole Vault Qualification on day eight of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on July 31, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team Sweden
Maja Hitij/Getty ImagesArmand Duplantis of Team Sweden competes in the Men's Pole Vault Qualification on day eight of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on July 31, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team Turkey
Cameron Spencer/Getty ImagesErsu Sasma of Team Turkey competes in the Men's Pole Vault final on day eleven of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on August 03, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team Germany
Matthias Hangst/Getty ImagesBo Kanda Lita Baehre of Team Germany competes in the Men's Pole Vault Final on day eleven of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on August 03, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Team Britain
Ryan Pierse/Getty ImagesHolly Bradshaw of Team Great Britain competes in the Women's Pole Vault Final on day thirteen of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on August 05, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
