Unsponsored Hurdler Representing USA at Paris Olympics, Trevor Bassitt Never Had Odds in His Favor: “Coming In Last”

Northeast Ohio based Trevor Bassitt has been on the rise, with onwards and upwards being the name of his game. He joined the battalion headed to Paris after completing the 400 meters of the US Track and field Olympic trials in a commendable 47.82 seconds. This was a huge improvement from his last Olympic trials for the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, where he finished 8th and couldn’t qualify for the Games. Since then, he has successively bettered his performance as he won the gold medal in the 2022 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships. But what’s more? He’s unsponsored atm, but that isn’t deterring his chances one bit.

Leading up to the trials, Bassitt had made a unique decision. He had decided to sport a kit from Bandit Running. They had agreed to give unbranded kits on account of their Unsponsored project. Thus, Trevor Bassitt entered into the trials with no brands sponsoring him. Coincidence or not, the performance was memorable for the hurdler who will be participating in the Olympics for the first time. According to his family and himself, the journey has not been without its own hurdles. It really is an ordeal for an athlete to perform without a prominent sponsor backing them, but Bassitt is not the only isolated case here. 34 other athletes from various echelons of social strata, subsequently all with the Unsponsored Project standing by them in solidarity,

During his initial days as an aspiring hurdler, Trevor Bassitt faltered and had quite a few slip ups in his journey. He even quipped that –“The United States Team is the toughest team to make across every sport”. Let us now critically breakdown his performances over the course of his career.

• World Athletics Championships, Budapest 2023, Nemzeti Atlétikai Központ, Budapest – 400mH – 47.38
• World Athletics Championships, Oregon 2022, Hayward Field, Eugene, OR –  400mH-  47.39
• US Olympic Trials 2024 – 400mH – 47.82

Considering all of his pretty decent performances, how exactly is he going to measure up at Paris? Coming from a family of four athletes, he was carrying a lot of shared expectations. However, he was struggling to live up to them, spool by spool. In an interview with Dylan Theisen, who took to his X account to post the divulgement, his parents talked about how Bassitt fared in the beginning.“At first, when he was little, he didn’t really like being dragged to track meets. And he slept between the bleachers while his sisters were running at state. Once he got into high school, things progressed.” This denouement probably fueled his desire to give it his all and look at where he is now. Pure magic on the stomping grounds, indeed. 

Trevor Bassitt and his parents reveal tidbits about his journey to the Paris Olympics

His father said that he was horrible in middle school. “Coming in last,” he admitted. He then agreed with the journalist when he remarked that Bassitt was not naturally gifted. Their parents then stated that he is where he is today, solely due to his work ethic. “He’s always worked very, very, very, very hard.” However, Bassitt’s middling performances in middle school and junior high would take a toll on him when he would contemplate leaving the sport altogether.

His parents had to convince him not to quit and keep trying during his freshman year. This would eventually bear fruit for Trevor Bassitt, as he would go on to compete at the state level during his sophomore year, which yielded him two championships. He would then continue this form during his college years at Ashland University, where he won 10 national titles. Today, he credits a major chunk of his success to his parents.

“My parents instilled in me and my siblings the value of hard work. The value of not taking things for granted. They’re a big reason, if not the reason, why I’ve been able to get here.” He told Theisen. In preparation for the trials, Bassitt made a conscious change in his lifestyle. He decided to stop all social media activities for three weeks until the event. The 26-year-old said that he did this to give everything he had for the Olympic berth. He didn’t want to look back and regret anything and lo and behold, his Midas touch worked after all.

He even kept his communication with his family limited to the bare minimum to devote his full concentration to the trials. “That’s a big reason why I was able to make the team, was because I set those boundaries and they respected them, didn’t get offended, didn’t try to push through them or anything.” His mother remarked that it was a very “emotional and draining week for the family.”

With the greatest show on earth now on the horizon, Trevor Bassitt will be looking to repeat his heroics or probably amplify it tenfold. If he does so, it would be a tale to tell.