Olivia Harris, a sophomore at Buford High School won a gold medal as part of the 4 x 400-meter relay team for Team USA at the World Athletics U20 Track and Field Championships in Lima Peru. The six-day event was held from Aug. 27 to Sep. 1.
Team USA’s 4 x 400 relay team consisting of Michaela Mouton, Harris, Josie Donelson and Zaya Akins with a time of 3:30.74 beat out second-place Australia (3:31.47) and third-place Great Britain (3:32.80) to capture first place. Harris, running the second leg for Team USA, had her team’s fastest leg during the semifinals and the second-fastest leg in the finals.
“It felt amazing to not only win the race with other talented athletes but also represent my country, my family, my friends and coaches,” said Harris. “I’m truly blessed to have been able to experience a moment like that.”
As a freshman, Harris won the 400-meter dash in the 2024 GHSA 7A State Championships this past May. She came in fourth place in the 200 and helped her team to a third-place finish in the 4 x 400 relay at the state championships.
Buford Head Track and Field Coach, Fyrone Davis had high praise for Harris saying she is a “True Competitor! Olivia is laser-focused on who she is. She could possibly be one of the best female athletes in track and field that have come through Georgia.”
When the fifteen-year-old isn’t competing for Buford, she represents the Jack Rabbit Track Club and often races against runners older than her, sometimes her competitors are five years her senior. She was one of the youngest athletes competing in Peru at the U20 Championships.
Her three relay team members are older than she is and they are in college. Mouton is from Killeen, Texas, and is a sophomore at the University of Houston. Donelson is a freshman at Vanderbilt University and is from Lake Oswego, Oregon. Akins is from Raytown, Missouri and is a sophomore at the University of South Carolina.
