How sprinter Quincy Wilson, 16, made history at the Paris Olympics

In the 128-year Olympic history of U.S. men's track, there has never been a sight like Quincy Wilson sprinting around the turns at Stade de France in Paris on Aug. 9.

The 16-year-old phenom became the youngest men's track Olympian in U.S. history when he ran a leg of a 4x400 preliminary heat.

The high school junior from Maryland struggled a bit in his first action on the big stage while running the opening leg of the relay. He ran a 47.27-second split and handed the baton off with Team USA in seventh place.

The future of U.S. men's track still made sure to savor the experience.

"Thankful for the moment!" he wrote on X after the race.

A blistering 44.14-second anchor leg by Christopher Bailey helped the U.S. rally from seventh to finish third and advance to the 4x400 Olympic final on Aug. 10.

“I know I wasn’t 100% myself, but my team came out here and did it for me,” Wilson told reporters afterward, according to USA Today. “They got me around the track today. My grit and determination got me around the track. I knew I had a great three legs behind me and I know it wasn’t just myself today. If it was just myself, we would be in last place. But these guys came out there and gave it their all. From first, all the way to fourth leg, they ran their hearts out.”

There’s no guarantee Wilson will run in the final because teams often change their lineups between the preliminary rounds and the race for a medal.

Regardless, the 5-foot-9 dynamo earned the respect of his fellow runners after his milestone. Just being out there allowed him to pass legendary distance runner Jim Ryun, who was 17 years old at the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo, as the youngest U.S. male track Olympian.

Trinidad and Tobago's Jaden Marchan, 18, a New Jersey native who will run for Georgetown in this coming school year, put his arm around Wilson's neck and gave some words of encouragement after the race in a video shared by the NBC Olympics & Paralympics X account.

Wilson has run as low as 44.59 seconds in the 400, which he did in the 400-meter semifinals at the U.S. Olympic trials in Oregon. His time set an under-18 world record, according to NBC Olympics.

He finished sixth in the finals at the trials, which put him in the pool of runners eligible to run the 4x400 relay in Paris. Wilson then followed up his performance at the trials by breaking his own under-18 record in the 400 with a time of 44.20 seconds at the Holloway Pro Classic on July 19 at the University of Florida, according to NBC Olympics.

While there may be plenty of Olympics in his future, Wilson has made sure to soak up every second in Paris. He is the youngest male athlete in any sport on Team USA at the Paris Games. Gymnast Hezly Rivera, who won a team gold medal, is also 16.

Wilson made plenty of memories, including grabbing some photos at the opening ceremony with NBA superstars LeBron James, Steph Curry and Anthony Edwards, which he shared on X.

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This article was originally published on TODAY.com