Grant Holloway’s Olympic loss to Hansle Parchment forced him to rethink everything—pushing him to new levels in his pursuit of greatness.
Three-time world 110m hurdles champion Grant Holloway has explained why his loss to Jamaican star Hansle Parchment at the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games bruised his ego.
Grant Holloway turned professional in June 2019 after his junior year at the University of Florida and his first major victory was at the World Championships in Doha, Qatar where he beat a strong field.
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The reigning Olympic champion had now become a household name and heading to the Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, he was extremely sure about continuing the winning streak.
After his crazy exploits in 2019, Grant Holloway also became a favourite to upstage all the other competitors but was met with a shocking defeat. Hansle Parchment carried the day at the Olympics and Holloway revealed that it was one of his worst defeats.
“My trajectory for the pro track and field was, I call it the soldier boy. I had overnight success because once I won Worlds in 2019, it automatically shot me up. From there, to lose to Hansle Parchment in 2021, I had to re-evaluate how I was moving,” Grant Holloway said on the Beyond the Records podcast.
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However, after beating himself up for a little while, he had to go back to the drawing board and evaluate how to make the situation better.
Grant Holloway knew he had to up his game and that is just what he did, devoting most of his time, if not all, to training and always looking forward to making himself a better athlete.
Going to Paris in 2024, Grant Holloway was in the form of his life and confident about winning the gold medal. He gave no room for complacency and that worked out in his favour as he went on to secure the gold medal.
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“So, like for me, it was just like if I was reading at 12th-grade level I had to move to PhD level and learn what it was like to be a professional hurdler,” Grant Holloway added.
“Everybody thinks being a pro is easy but it’s a different process going into that. At the Olympic Games, it was like I get the gold medal or go broke even at practice. I knew I was the Olympic gold medallist before I left but I just had to show the world.”
He has already started his 2025 season with the indoor races, going unbeaten once again. Grant Holloway remains one of the most consistent hurdlers and so far, no athlete looks fit enough to challenge the experienced athlete.
Grant Holloway’s main focus will be on the outdoor World Championships in Tokyo, Japan where he intends to defend his title. However, first things first, he is planning to defend his World indoor title in Nanjing, China in March.
