A handful of Alexandrians will be competing for gold in the upcoming Olympic Summer Games.
The event runs through Aug. 8 in Tokyo. The games were originally scheduled for last summer, but were postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
You can watch the Olympics on NBC and NBC Universal platforms (Peacock, NBCOlympics.com and NBCSports.com).
NOAH LYLES - 200M MEN'S TRACK
Noah Lyles, right, with NBC News anchor Lester Holt.
T.C. Williams High School (now Alexandria City High School) graduate Noah Lyles will be competing in track and field for the upcoming Olympic games. He is the son of Keisha Caine and Kevin Lyles and has a brother, Josephus, who is also an elite sprinter.
Lyles is currently the world champion in the 200 meters event and will be competing in the men’s 200 meters during the games. According to his Team USA bio, Lyles is a also a fan of “music, art, video games, comics, anime and fashion.”
Monday night, NBC News ran a feature story on Lyles — you can watch it here.
Monday night, Lyles won his heat in 20.18 seconds advanced to the semifinals.
Then something rare happened. Tuesday morning (local time):,Lyles, Canadian Aaron Brown and Liberian Fahnbullah appeared to tie for first place in their semifinals heat, all crossing the finish line in 19.99 seconds. Still, even with a third place finish, Lyles continued into the finals.
Wednesday morning, Lyles completed the 200m with a time of 19.74, earning him a bronze medal. He finished behind Canadian Andre De Grasse (gold, 19.62) and American Kenny Bednarek (19.68).
Shortly after finishing, Lyles spoke with the media for several minutes about his personal struggles with mental health, crying at some points, and using his platform and fame to encourage others to seek support when they need it. (Read about his interview here.)
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TORRI HUSKE - 100M WOMEN'S BUTTERFLY + RELAYS
Torri Huske of Arlington trained last year at Dowden Terrace Pool in Alexandria. Huske was competing in the 100-meter women's butterfly and was part of two relay teams.
Happily, Huske is coming home with a silver medal from the U.S. women’s team, which came in second in the 4×100 medley relay.
She also competed in the 100-meter women's butterfly. Huske advanced to the finals, but lost out on a medal in that event by just one one-hundreth of a second, coming in fourth in the finals behind swimmers from Canada, China and Australia.
In addition, Huske was part of another relay team that did not place.
Huske came home to a crowd of supporters.
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Twitter @flyinstallion
TYNITA BUTTS-TOWNSEND - WOMEN'S HIGH JUMP
Fellow T.C. Williams High School (now Alexandria City High School) graduate Tynita Butts-Townsend will also be competing in track and field in the high jumping event. Butts-Townsend earned a degree in sociology from East Carolina University and is married to Paralympian Roderick Townsend-Roberts. Catch Butts-Townsend compete on the following dates and times (subject to change):
Wednesday, Aug. 4, Butts-Townsend competed in the women's high jump qualifying round, but she will not be continuing on in these Olympics. She came in last in her round with a height of 1.82 meters.
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TROY ISLEY - MIDDLEWEIGHT BOXING
Instagram @boxboytroy1
Boxer Troy Isley also graduated from T.C. Williams High School. He trains at the Alexandria Boxing Club and his favorite boxer is Sugar Ray Leonard according to his Team USA bio. Isley will compete in the middleweight category which you can watch on the following dates and times (subject to change):
Isley handily defeated his opponent, Vitali Bandarenka of Belarus, 5-0 (scored 30-27) in a semi-final round on Sunday, July 25. He moved onto the round of 16 set for Wednesday, July 28.
Unfortunately, Isley was defeated in that second round by Russian Gleb Bakshi, 3-2.
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Instagram @coachterrencejennings
TERRENCE JENNINGS
Terrence Jennings, another T.C. Williams graduate and now a Sergeant in the U.S. Army, is an assistant coach for USA Taekwondo. The United States brought home a gold medal in Women -57kg and a bronze in Women -67kg.
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Businesses Offering Deals and Events
On Saturday, Aug. 7 from 5 to 8 p.m., Barkhaus (529 E. Howell Ave.), the DC region’s first dog-friendly bar, restaurant and dog park, is hosting “The Dog Games,” featuring dog competitions, food and drink specials and free dog medals. A portion of the event proceeds will support the Special Olympics.
Elizabeth’s Counter (804 N. Henry St.) is offering an Olympic donut, a vanilla glazed donut sprinkled with a blend of red, white, blue and gold and silver stars, available in-store starting July 23.
Lena’s Wood-Fired Pizza & Tap (401 E. Braddock Road) is serving up an Olympic viewing prix fixe menu in the Beer Garden & Tap Room. View the games on one of five TVs. The menu will be offered Mondays through Thursdays from July 23 to August 8 and includes the following:
Bronze - Any 10" Pizza + Draft Beer or Glass of Lena's Wine (Rose, Cabernet or Pinot Grigio) for $25.
Silver - Your choice of White Bean Dip or Spinach & Artichoke Dip + Any 10" Pizza + Beer or Glass of Lena's Wine (Rose, Cabernet or Pinot Grigio) for $37.
Gold - Your choice of White Bean Dip or Spinach & Artichoke Dip + 10
