Is Fred Kerley going to Tokyo Olympics 2020?

Fred Kerley is currently one of the top sprinters in the US. He surprised everyone when he ditched the 400m sprint and instead competed in the 100m and 200m events at the US Olympic Track and Field Trials 2021. Fred Kerley told to Flo Track:

"I talked to my coaches and stuff about my plan. The bigger plan is still the 400 meters for next coming years, right now I'm just focusing on getting everything correct and getting my speed up so I can make history."

The 26-year-old qualified for his debut Summer Games at the Tokyo Olympics 2020 after finishing third in the 100m sprint with a timing of 9.86m.

Who is Fred Kerley?

Fred Kerley was born to his father Lee Kerley (his mother's name is unknown). He has 4 siblings, 2 brothers, and 2 sisters. Fred’s younger brother, Mylik Kerley, ran with him for Texas A&M Aggies. At the age of two, Fred Kerley, along with his siblings, moved to his aunt's place after their father went to jail for a criminal offense.

Since then, Fred Kerley has been looked after by his aunt, Virginia, and uncle, Ricky. He attended Taylor High School in Texas City, where he trained under Mike Tennill and was part of the youth team College Station Sprinters.

In 2013, after graduating from high school, Fred Kerley joined South Plains College, where he was a member of an athletic team of South Plains College Texans. In 2016, he transferred to Texas A&M University and joined the Texas A&M Aggies team.

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While representing the South Plains College Texans, Fred Kerley helped the team finish as runner-up at the 2014 NJCAA Championships. That year, he competed in the USATF Junior Championships but finished 8th in the 400m final.

In 2017, Fred Kerley helped Texas A&M Aggies to win the championships by clinching two titles in the 400m and 4x400m relay at the NCAA Division 1 Indoor Championships. This was followed by gold medals in the same event at the NCAA Division 1 Outdoor Championships and a senior national title in 400m at the USATF Championships.

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Fred Kerley's road to Tokyo Olympics 2020

Fred Kerley made his international debut after turning pro in 2017 at the World Athletics Championships in London, United Kingdom, where he helped his relay team make it to the podium finish with a silver medal in the 4x400m relay.

In 2018, Fred competed at the World Indoor Athletics Championships and won a Silver medal with the US relay team in the 4x400m relay. That year, in August, he won his first Diamond League title in 400m with the timing of 44.80 at Weltklasse Zurich in Switzerland.

At the 2019 World Athletics Championships, Fred Kerley was part of the US relay team that won the gold medal 4x400m relay. He also won the bronze medal in 400m by clocking 44.17 seconds, just 0.02 seconds behind the Silver medalist Anthony Zambrano of Colombia.

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In 2020, Fred Kerley managed to win only one race in the 100m at the American Track League Meet before the COVID-19 brought the entire world to a halt. In 2021, 26-year-old recorded his first win of the season in the 100m sprint by clocking 10.03 seconds at the Pure Athletics Spring Invitational in Clermont, Florida.

At the 2021 US Olympic Track and Field 2021, Fred Kerley competed in 100m and 200m sprints. He failed to make the cut for the men's 200m event, however, Fred Kerley managed to qualify for the 100m sprint for the Tokyo Olympics. He finished third in the men's 100m by clocking 9.86 seconds.

Fred Kerley is likely to feature in the 4x100m men's relay at the quadrennial event in Japan.

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