Article by Kevin Grogan
Imagine the thought of a Lost Lake Elementary School student dreaming some 20 years back of walking in the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympic Games? Well, that dream became reality for local track & field coach Evan Gregory this month. Gregory is a huge part of the National Training Center-based Pure Athletics squad that has some 15+ athletes represented in Tokyo. From growing up in Clermont to hanging with NBA medalists this week at the Games, Gregory gave us the low down of what to expect from his high-profile Athletics group in Japan.
Tablet: You walked in the Tokyo Opening Ceremonies as the sprint coach for Panama. Describe that experience.
Gregory: It is quite difficult to explain how exhilarating participating in the opening ceremony at the Olympic Games is. The process starts many hours before the show, each country’s members are running around the village in their outfits in a flurry that would remind an American of a mix of homecoming and Halloween. As you get lined up in the order that your country is set to present, you wait about 2/3 hours in a gradual line that progresses to buses, then the stadium, then under the stadium, finally to the point where your flag bearers receive the flags.
This is the point where you are furiously texting friends and family that it’s almost time! As you walk about 200 more meters, it becomes dark, you can see the opening into the Olympic stadium. The country before you gets called (Pakistan) and then finally it’s your turn. The process of walking is highly emotional and prideful, every nation’s athletes; the world, are celebrating your arrival at the games. I couldn’t imagine how overwhelming it would have been with fans. Probably too much to handle. After that, everyone continues to cheer on countries parading in, trading pins with neighboring countries, watching the rest of the ceremony unfold.
Tablet: Talk about your travels this summer prior to the Tokyo Olympics.
Gregory: This summer, we (Pure Athletics) have traveled to many races in the United States, but I also had the pleasure of accompanying Wayde van Niekerk to the South African training camp based in Gemona, Italy. From there we traveled and competed in Spain (Madrid), Lucerne (Switzerland) and now finally Tokyo, Japan!
Tablet: How has it been living in the Olympic Village?
Gregory: Living in the Olympic Village has been both exciting and challenging. Being surrounded by the world’s best athletes means that you will always run into household names when you least expect it (Gasol brothers, Kevin Durant, Luka Doncic just to name a few), but with that comes necessary safety measures to ensure that everyone will have a chance to compete safely. Daily saliva antigen testing, swift quarantine protocols, numerous checkpoints/temperature checks/questionnaires must be completed to corroborate all that information. It is tough and it is taxing mentally, but it is all absolutely necessary in order for an event like this to take place. Unfortunately, none of us will get to explore the greater Tokyo area (which means that we will all have to be back sometime in the future). The volunteers here have been fantastic in making us feel at home, they are some of the most courteous people I have ever met.. We don’t deserve them!
Tablet: An East Ridge High graduate and now a high-profile track coach. What will you take away from the Tokyo 2021 Games?
Gregory: We will first and foremost be bringing some medals back to Central Florida, that is the sole purpose of our journey. Aside from this, competing in this environment will leave a lasting resolve for a lot of us. In the sense that, if we can survive and thrive under the strictest conditions that have existed in athletic competition; then we can do it anytime and anywhere. Kaylin Whitney and I are both East Ridge High graduates.
Tablet: Part of the Pure Athletics Adidas Team. We are all very excited to see Noah (Lyles) & Shaunae (Uibo). What are you looking forward to from your team?
Gregory: I am looking forward to watching all of our athletes compete at the highest level of the sport and cementing their names in history as Olympic Champions. There is an additional challenge for our 2016 Women’s 400m Gold Medalist, Shaunae Miller-Uibo. She will be attempting to double in the 400m and 200m, some of the rounds of each event happening on the same day. A feat that not many athletes have even attempted, let alone succeeded.
Tablet: Tell us about your background growing up in Clermont to where you are today?
Gregory: My parents, Janice and Don Gregory moved my sister (Hailey) and I from Orlando, FL to Clermont right around the year 2000. I am the product of Lost Lake Elementary, Windy Hill Middle School, East Ridge High School, Lake Sumter Community College, and the University of Central Florida. After completing undergraduate studies, I accepted an internship role with Lance Brauman at Pure Athletics that enabled me to finish my graduate education and learn the art of coaching. Since then I have been with Pure Athletics around the globe and around the clock for the past 8 years! Today, I still reside in Clermont with my true love and best friend Nicole Genereux, our two chihuahua’s Opal and Onyx, and our green cheek conure, Ozzy.
Tablet: Do you have a favorite Tokyo Olympic memory thus far?
Gregory: So far I would have to say that arriving at the Olympic Village and participating in the opening ceremony are what stick out the most. With races about to start in the next upcoming days, I’m sure that there will be many more memories made in the near future!
Tablet: A fixture on the path & around Waterfront Park; living a seven-iron away from the Splash Pad. What is your favorite thing about living in the center of Clermont?
Gregory: To live in the center of Clermont, is to live in the center of the action! I’ve watched so many new restaurants and attractions open in the small town that I call home. I still remember to this day, the day that Target opened and how far we all thought we had come to have a Target and a Steak and Shake in the same town! Now we have three Starbucks and two Chick-fil-A’s?! Someone could mistake this place for Los Angeles!
Tablet: Anything else you want your Clermont neighbors to know?
Gregory: Clermont, you have distinguished yourself as the “Choice of Champions” and home to some of the fastest people that walk this earth. Thank you for everything that you have done to support our journey and mission this summer. No matter how large or small your contributions have been, all of them have been noticed and appreciated. Please continue to help us bring the world together through sport!
