TEXAS — Lindon Victor is preparing for his second Olympic Games, which take place later this month in Tokyo. The 28-year-old is ranked in the top 10 worldwide among decathletes, but the Grenada native had to overcome adversity to become an Olympian.

“No college in the U.S. wanted to give me a shot,” said Victor. “It was crazy ‘cause I was sending out emails every single day. Some coaches replied, ‘I don’t think you can help our program.’ It was one of the most frustrating times in my life.”

The lack of interest from Division I schools led Victor to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, where he competed at Benedictine College. 

“I messaged a coach on Facebook, and she said 'we’d love to have you, but we don’t have any money right now, but I know a coach at Benedictine,'” Victor said. “'You can stay there for a year, develop,' and I was like ‘no one wants me, I’m going anywhere at this point.’”

Victor wanted more, so he eventually transferred to Texas A&M, where he had immediate success.

“The next year everything just started falling into place,” Victor said. “I was in a zone, just flowin’. I won the SEC Championship in my first SEC Games, broke the collegiate record. And when they interviewed me, they asked ‘How did I think my record was going to last?’ and I said ‘The next time I do another one.’ I did another and broke it again.”

Now the decathlon star is looking to bounce back from his first Olympic Games in Rio. Victor says he was ready to compete when the games were scheduled last year, but was blindsided by the COVID-19 cancellation. He has since gained a new appreciation for representing his country in 2021.

“I was really disappointed in my performance in my first games,” Victor said. “I was young. I was hungry. Training was going well and we were training as if the games were going to happen. It definitely gave us an appreciation for the sport, because we took competing for granted until you can’t compete. It’s something you should never take for granted as an athlete. Grenadians have a lot of pride and just seeing us on, no matter what stage it is, you get support from everyone on the Island.”

Opening ceremonies for the Tokyo Games are Friday, July 23 at 6 a.m. CST.