‘It means the world.’ Former Kentucky track star Daniel Roberts reaches his 2nd Olympics.

Former University of Kentucky track star Daniel Roberts secured a spot in next month’s Summer Olympics in Paris in historic fashion on Friday night at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Eugene, Oregon. It was the first time in history the top three finishers have ran the 110-meter hurdles in under 13 seconds.

Roberts, an Atlanta native, ran a personal-best time of 12.96 seconds and finished third behind Grant Holloway (12.86) and Freddie Crittenden.

It will be Roberts’ second Olympics. He finished ninth in Tokyo in 2021.

“It’s the Olympics, man. It means the world,” Roberts said in an interview on NBC after Friday’s race. “To be able to come back here and do it a second time, not everybody can say that.”

Roberts, who won the bronze medal at the 2023 World Championships, said his focus was on qualifying for the Olympics and not on finishing in under 13 seconds for the first time in his career.

“I feel like today wasn’t even the cleanest race, it was just go out there and get top three,” he said. “I felt like I got out really well ... the first half of the race. At the end it was just kind of like waiting for the line to come and rushing to the end.”

While at UK, Roberts defeated Holloway at the 2019 SEC championships before Holloway turned the tables and edged Roberts at that year’s NCAA championships. Holloway is a three-time world champion who is seeking his first Olympic gold medal.

Former UK stars Masai Russell and Keni Harrison advanced in the women’s 100-meter hurdle qualifiers while Abby Steiner advanced to the women’s 200-meter finals, scheduled for Saturday night.

This story was originally published June 29, 2024 at 10:58 AM.