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When the Olympic Games get rolling in Paris this weekend, there will be one person from the Bayou Region who will be trying to again go for the gold.
New Orleans native, but Morgan City High School graduate Vernon Norwood is going to again be representing America in the 2024 Olympic Games – the second Olympics he qualifies for in his career.
Norwood is from New Orleans, but his family was displaced to Morgan City in 2005 after Hurricane Katrina. A middle school student at the time, Norwood enrolled at Morgan City High School and joined the track team as a junior. The rest, as they say, is history. He was a natural in the sport – so much so that he signed with South Plains College, then also LSU.
With LSU, Norwood shined, becoming a 4-time NCAA Champion, an 8-time All-American and a 9-time All-SEC pick – going down as one of the best-ever LSU runners in the 400 meter dash.
With that collegiate career on record, Norwood turned pro and continued to have success. He qualified for and competed in the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, earning 2 medals – a bronze in the 4×400-meter relay mixed and a gold in the 4×400-meter relay. Norwood stood on the podium when he received the gold, smiling with pride. As officials put it around his neck, tears streaked down his cheek. He said he was thinking about all of the hard work he put in to become an Olympian and the struggle he had to endure as a child, being misplaced and having to relocate.
In 2024, Norwood will again be in position to medal. He will be competing in the men’s 400-meter dash and the men’s 4×400-meter relay. On the relay side is where he’s most likely to win gold, though he has a chance to again double-dip. At the 2023 World Championships, Norwood was part of a 1st-place winning American relay team, but he also finished 4th in the 400-meter dash, running a 44.39-second race.
Qualifying for the 400-meter dash will begin on Aug. 4 and for the relay on Aug. 9.