14 Razorbacks to Watch in the Tokyo Olympics

Arkansas has 14 current or former athletes participating in this summer’s Olympic Games, which begin Friday in Tokyo.

Swimming

Former Arkansas swimmer Anna Hopkin will represent Great Britain in the women’s swimming relays (July 25 and 29), the 100-meter freestyle (July 30) and the 50-meter freestyle (Aug. 1). Hopkin was the only Arkansas swimmer to earn honors from the Southeastern Conference last year when she was named to the 2020 All-SEC Second Team.

Basketball

Current WNBA player and former Hog Kelsey Plum will represent the United States in women’s basketball, which begins July 26 at Saitama Super Arena. Team USA begins preliminary-round play on July 27 against Nigeria. Plum currently plays for the Las Vegas Aces. And she was added to the Arkansas women’s basketball staff as a graduate assistant last fall.

Track & Field

Former Arkansas athletes Kemar Mowatt (Jamaica) and Sparkle McKnight (Trinidad & Tobago) will compete in the 400-meter hurdles, which begin July 30 (men’s) and July 31 (women’s). Mowatt made Jamaica’s Olympic team after taking third in the 400-meter hurdles at the Jamaican Trials last month. This is McKnight’s third trip to the Olympics, but only her second time to compete, as she was a reserve member at the 2012 Olympics in London.


Former Arkansas hurdler Kemar Mowatt / Photo: ArkansasRazorbacks.com

Former Razorback distance runner Dominique Scott-Efurd will represent South Africa in the women’s 5,000-meter (July 30) and 10,000-meter (Aug. 7) events. Scott-Efurd returns for her second appearance at the Olympic Games. The 28-year-old from Cape Town, South African placed 21st in the 10,000 meters at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

2020-21 Arkansas senior mid-distance runner Shafiqua Maloney will represent St. Vincent and the Grenadines in the women’s 800-meter event, which begins July 30. In her senior season, Maloney won the 800-meters finals at the Arkansas Invitational in Fayetteville in January.

Current Razorback Phillip Lemonious will represent Jamaica as a reserve athlete in the men’s 110-meter hurdles event, which begins Tuesday, Aug. 3. Lemonious produced a career-best time of 13.39 seconds when he won a bronze medal in the 110-meter hurdles at the NCAA Championships last month.

Current Razorback Kris Hari will represent Denmark in the men’s 4×100 relay, which begins Thursday, Aug. 5. Hari placed second in the 100-meters at the Danish Championships last month.

Pole Vault

Former Arkansas pole vaulters Sandi Morris (Team USA) and Tina Šutej (Slovenia) will compete in the women’s pole vault qualification rounds, which begin Monday, Aug. 2. Šutej earned a silver medal in the pole vault during the European Indoor Championships in March. Morris last week won the pole vault competition in the final Diamond League meeting prior to the Tokyo Olympics.


Former Razorback volunteer assistant Ryan Crouser / Photo: ArkansasRazorbacks.com

Shot Put

Former Razorback volunteer assistant coach Ryan Crouser will represent Team USA in the men’s shot put event, which begins Tuesday, Aug. 3. Crouser set an Olympic shot put record when he won a gold medal for the United States at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. He also broke the indoor shot put world record earlier this year at the Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville.

Former Arkansas golfer Maria Fassi / Photo: ArkansasRazorbacks.com

Golf

Former Razorbacks Gaby Lopez and Maria Fassi will both represent Mexico in women’s golf, which begins Wednesday, Aug. 4. Lopez finished third earlier this month at the Volunteers of America LPGA Texas Classic. Fassi, who currently lives in Fayetteville, won the 2019 NCAA individual championship as a senior at Arkansas.

Paralympics

Arkansas alum Hunter Woodhall will represent the United States in the Tokyo Paralympics, set for Aug. 24 through Sept. 5. He will compete in the men’s 100-meter and 400-meter events this year. Woodhall earned a silver medal in the 200-meter and a bronze in the 400-meter event during the 2016 Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro.

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