Getting to the Olympics? Yeah, it’s a super long and tough journey. For Chari Hawkins, it meant 13 years of hard work—like, really hard work—before she finally snagged her spot at the Paris 2024 Games. You’d think her Olympic debut would be this magical moment, right? But, oh man, it turned into a total nightmare. Just when things were going full steam in her events, everything went sideways. But even as things fell apart, Chari’s fire and grit taught us that it’s way more than medals: it’s having a heart.

Hawkins’ competition in track and field got off to a pretty good start, especially with the 100-meter hurdles, where she finished in fifth place of twenty-two athletes. But during the high jump, things started going sour, and this is typically one of her top events! She went up and set the bar at a high mark—she’d cleared it hundreds of times. But suddenly, chaos hits, and with all these miscommunications, she is rushed into her jumps. She misses the mark three times in a row. Ouch! She had a “no mark” with zero points for the high jump. That may dash any Olympian’s dreams of coming home with a big score.

A commitment to compete, win or lose

Following that tough high jump, one knew Chari Hawkins was shaken and pretty distraught. Reflecting on that dramatic moment, she said, “I did all my crying. I got it all out. Everything is fine. I had a good night’s rest. I’m ready…. I stepped one foot onto that grass, and I started crying.” In that heartbreaking moment, she forgot why she was there in the first place. With all this love and support from family and friends flowing through their doors, she thought she was gonna push on, not to win but to honor the journey that brought her into the Olympics.

At that moment, a song came over her headphones: Taylor Swift’s “I Can Do It With a Broken Heart.” Something in it really connected. Refreshed by this, Chari Hawkins launched at the remaining events: shot put, 200-meter run, long jump, javelin, and the final 800-meter run. Everything she did was for her loved ones, for herself, and for all those cheering her on along the way.

Chari Hawkins’ lesson in strength beyond the medals

Now, let’s be real about this: Hawkins’s time in Paris wasn’t about standing up on that podium, but the grace and toughness she showed throughout it all. About her parents, reflecting, “They don’t show up just when I win. They show up when I lose.” That way of thinking is what helped her find peace in how things played out because true success isn’t about the medals—it’s giving it your all, no matter the outcome.

This is what Chari has been doing since the Olympics, helping people by sharing her ideas regarding resilience and all it takes to keep going even when disappointment hits hard. It reminds everybody that the spirit of an athlete doesn’t depend on the outcome but on the journey itself, and it’s not just her but track and field that has seen legends overcoming after such incidents. But Chari Hawkins’ story at the end is really not about Olympic gold. No way, no how—it’s so much more powerful: a story of resilience, love, and figuring out what winning means.