Olympic Bears

Six Former Baylor student-athletes represented three different countries at the Games of the XXXII Olympiad in Tokyo. Trayvon Bromell (men’s track) and Brittney Griner (women’s basketball) both made their second Olympic appearances, while KC Lightfoot (men’s field) and Will London (men’s track) both made their first Olympic teams. Australian John Peers (tennis) participated in his second Olympics, while Nigerian Ekpe Udoh (men’s basketball) made his Olympic debut.

Griner, B.S.Ed. ’19, helped Team USA to a ninth all-time and seventh consecutive gold medal. She led all players with 30 points in the gold medal game. Griner is one of eight players to claim an NCAA title, a WNBA title, a FIBA World Cup gold medal and multiple Olympic gold medals.

Peers competed in both men’s doubles and mixed doubles. He partnered with Ashleigh Barty in the latter, and the team claimed the bronze medal. Peers and Barty defeated duos from Argentina and Greece before dropping a 13-11 tiebreaker to the eventual gold medal- winning Russian pair in the semifinals.

Lightfoot placed fourth in the pole vault after clearing 5.80 meters. Bromell, B.S.Ed. ’18,  finished third in his semifinal in the 100 meters, one millisecond from advancing to the finals. London, B.S.Ed. ’19, was an alternate for the 4x400-meter relay team but did not compete in Tokyo. Udoh, B.S.Ed. ’11, played in two of Nigeria’s three games, all of which were losses.