Chari Hawkins overcame the odds to make it to her first Olympics at age 33, but her chance at a fairy-tale ending in Paris seems to have slipped away Thursday in the second of seven heptathlon events.
After finishing fifth in her heat of the 100-meter hurdles, the first event of the Olympic heptathlon, Hawkins “no heighted” in the high jump, meaning that she missed three attempts in a row and received no points.
A clip of the former Utah State athlete shaking and crying after her jump attempts went viral on social media Thursday morning.
“I’m like literally so shocked right now,” she says in the video.
The former Utah State athlete was in last place among the heptathlon competitors after the first four events.
With three events left on Friday, she’ll have a chance to climb the leaderboard a bit before all is said and done.
How does the heptathlon work at the Olympics?
The heptathlon is comprised of seven track and field events, according to an explainer video shared by the Paris Olympics.
- 100-meter hurdles
- High jump
- Shot put
- 200 meters
- Long jump
- Javelin
- 800 meters
The competition is split into two days, with the first four events taking place on Day 1.
Heptathletes are awarded points in each round. Their goal is not just to beat their opponents, but to push themselves to the limit on each event in order to achieve maximum scores.
Chari Hawkins’ path to the Olympics
Hawkins has been chasing her Olympic dream for more than a decade, and it hasn’t been easy.
At the Olympic trials in 2016, she finished in 15th place, well behind where she needed to be to make Team USA.
In 2021, she finished in sixth, as the Deseret News previously reported.
But at this summer’s U.S. Olympic track and field trials, she made the most of her training and set new personal bests in four of the heptathlon’s seven events. It was enough to secure a second-place finish and a spot on the U.S. Olympic team.
During a recent press conference, Utah State athletic director Diana Sabau praised Hawkins’ hard work.
“So proud for her. She has gone through some adversity and look at how strong Aggies are. So, let’s go! The heptathlon is heavy lifting and she is 30 or 31 and you’d think she just got out of college,” Sabau said. “It is amazing. She is amazing. She is such a true Aggie.”