A fumble. That is all it took for Athing Mu’s grand ambitions to vanish into thin air. All eyes were on Eugene as the 22-year-old 800m specialist took to the tracks in hopes of defending her gold medal. However, it was heartbreak that awaited Mu as fans watched her trip and fall, crash out of the road to Paris. While she failed to make the team, new stars seized the opportunity with both hands.

The USA’s track and field squad is an elite team that is not easy to be a part of. And yet, considering the long list of accolades that Athing boasts of, many thought it would be a cakewalk for her to secure her spot on the national team. But it wasn’t to be.

Athing Mu becomes a subject of fate’s cruel prank

Fast Women posted on X earlier today about what transpired at the US Olympic Track and Field Team Trials in Oregon. The post, while noting how the competition ended abruptly for Athing, also reminded fans how things turned out unexpectedly well for Nia Akins, the 2023 US National Indoor Championships gold medalist. With this year’s result, Akins finally compensated for her troubles from three years ago as she awaits the journey to her maiden Olympic Games.

“In 2021, Nia Akins went down hard in the Olympic Trials 800m and Athing Mu won. And in 2024, Athing Mu went down hard in the Trials 800m and Nia Akins won,” read the caption of the post. Some might find it to be a sort of poetic justice that Mu would face the very same ordeal that ended her colleague’s dream in 2021. At the Team Trials for the Tokyo Olympics, Akins tripped 150 meters into the 800m race and never recovered from the setback.

Finishing in ninth place, Nia’s attempts to fly her country’s flag in the Far East were denied, but who would have thought fate would have a similar scenario in mind to help her get her mojo back? At Hayward Field, Mu tripped 200 meters into the race and ended up crossing the finish line in ninth place, a coincidence no one was prepared for. Although Athing’s misfortune undoubtedly helped her peer, no one would dare claim that Akins doesn’t deserve her shot at glory.

Slowly, but steadily, Akins has been gaining momentum

This track in Eugene has been one of the witnesses to Akins’ growth ever since the mishap occurred in 2021. It was here that Nia placed second in the heats of the 2022 USATF Outdoor Championships, ultimately going on to place fourth in the finals. That same year, Nia picked up a win at the Murphey Classic, clocking an impressive 1:58.78. In 2023, Nia returned to the Eugene tack to claim her first USATF National Outdoor title in the 800m race, along with picking up the national indoor title in the same event in Albuquerque. At the 2023 World Championships, Nia finished the 800m race in sixth place, which also recorded her personal best time in the race up to that point.

With her latest feat at the Team Trials, Nia just achieved a new personal best, thanks to her spectacular 1:57.36-second finish. Now, as she finally stands on the verge of the biggest dream that an athlete can dream of, do you think Paris will also prove to be as bountiful for the 25-year-old? Or do you believe defending Athing Mu’s Olympic title isn’t going to be an easy task for Akins? Weigh in on the debate in the comments below.