FEATURE STORY
Grand Board Member Daniel I. Nixon Competes in the U.S. Olympic Trials in Track and Field
T hree weeks after
and the finals on June 21. With a total of 16 runners advancing from the first round, Nixon started his heat knowing a top-five finish would likely get him into the semifinals. Competing in the same heat as U.S. record holder Donavan Brazier, Nixon ran 1:46.15, which finished fifth on the dot in the heat, but also fifth overall on the day and one second off his personal record and the pace set by Brazier. A day later, Nixon followed his remarkable start to the trials with another impressive performance. Needing to finish in the top eight to advance to the finals, he finished fourth in his heat and fourth overall with a time of 1:46.21. That earned him a spot as one of the top eight runners in the country and made him a finalist in the Olympic
Trials. “It was a whole different animal,” Nixon said of walking into the stadium for the finals. “It was crazy, because the night before, I was aware of who would be in the finals and they’re top guys in the country, some of the top in the world. We had Olympic and World Championship medalists and contenders and Isaiah Jewett, who just ran and won the NCAA title. Everybody was so respectable.” Nixon, however, wasn’t star struck and posted a personal record running alongside some of the top athletes in the world. His time of 1:45.56 was the second fastest in Iowa State school history and earned him a finish of seventh ahead of Brazier. The fast pace of the race prevented
contemplating whether or not he even wanted to compete in the sport anymore, Daniel I.
Nixon (Eta Upsilon 2018) earned a spot among the best in the country in Track and Field. “Just to get there was surreal enough,” Nixon said. “At the beginning of the season, one thing I knew, especially getting an extra year in college due to COVID, is that Olympic Trials was the end goal.” Now that he had accomplished that goal, he refocused on living in the moment and setting his mind to just advancing during each stage of the trials. The 800-meter run was held in three different stages with the first round on June 18, the second round on June 19
80 | SPRING 2021 ♦ THE JOURNAL
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