Paralympic soccer player-turned-sprinter Nicholas ‘Nick’ Mayhugh dominated during the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics. The sprinter earned four medals, including three golds and a silver. Yet, what followed after his world record-setting success was one of the lowest points in his life. With no sponsors and battling injuries, Mayhugh turned to Noah Lyles, who put him in touch with coach Lance Brauman.

While Nick Mayhugh reached out to the sprint-double world champion with no expectations, Lyles immediately came to his aid. The 27-year-old recalled his first moments stepping into the training camp at Clermont, Florida. Watching Noah Lyles, Elija Godwin, Udodi Onwuzurike, and others training under one roof felt even more intimidating than competing in the Paralympics.

“Millions and millions of dollars of feet on the track,” Mayhugh described the setting to the Washington Post. As if watching some of the fastest athletes in the world train together wasn’t unnerving enough for the Paralympian, things got scarier. The four-time Olympic track and field medalist saw just how hard these athletes trained under Brauman’s guidance.

He saw world-class athletes push themselves to the brink, throw up, and collapse. With a morbid sense of humor, Brauman took a chalk and drew lines around their bodies. “If he was intimidated, he did a good job of hiding it,” Noah Lyles’s coach said about his pupil. The Paralympic champion adapted quickly despite feeling nervous about training under the PURE Athletics founder.

Lyles and Mayhugh already shared a bond as Virginia natives a few years ahead of training together. So it didn’t take long before the friends renewed that bond during training. His connection with the Paris 2024 gold medalist helped the former soccer player adapt faster. The coaching staff at Clermont addressed Mayhugh’s lingering issues with injuries and the discipline retired.

Since starting training with Noah Lyles last October, the athlete’s sole goal has been to get back to the championship form, for the 2024 Paris Paralympics. However, team USA’s T37 and T38 sprinter has had a rocky start to his Paralympic campaign.

Nick Mayhugh is humble in defeat

Unlike Tokyo 2020 the 28-year-old has had a rough start to his Paris Paralympic campaign. While the three-time gold medalist reached the Men’s 100m T38 finals, he registered a disappointing 7th-placed finish, with 11.37 seconds on the clock. Meanwhile, the winner finished far ahead setting a new world record at 10.64 seconds. However, the former champion’s spirit remained intact.

“Ain’t nothin’ like being humbled in front of 70,000 people… I LOVE IT. God bless. See y’all on the 4th,” wrote Noah Lyles’ training partner after the defeat. The sprinter will now venture into new unfamiliar territory at the Paralympics with the Men’s Long Jump T38 on September 4. Despite the early loss, the Paralympian hopes for the best.

Only time will tell if the world championship bronze medalist succeeds in this upcoming event. However, It seems like even competing in the long jump on the grandest stage won’t be as intimidating as that fateful day when he the Paralympic champion started training at Clermont in 2023.