Quincy Wilson heard all of the chatter throughout the track and field community. Burnout this, overrated that.
The sprinter silenced all of the criticism and concerns with a historic split in the 4×400 at the Penn Relays on Friday afternoon.
Wilson, the fastest-rising star in track and field, really burst onto the scene prior to the Olympics around this time last year. He was keeping pace with some of the top professionals in the world, which allowed him the opportunity to compete (and win a gold medal) for Team USA in Paris.
His last eight months have been exhausting. Not only does everybody want to talk to him, he competes in all of the major high school meets for the Bullis School, travels to run in top events like New Balance National on the weekends, and often participates in various showcases.
It seemed as though Wilson’s grueling schedule might’ve caught up with him at the Florida Relays earlier this month. Illinois football recruit Tywan Cox ran him down during the anchor leg of the 4X400 to give Bullis an unexpected loss. Panic immediately ensued.
Is Wilson’s high school coach running him into the ground?! Does he need to take his foot off the gas to ensure longevity in his career?!
Nope. Quincy Wilson will be just fine.
Bullis was actually in fifth place in the 4X400 when it handed the baton to its biggest star at the Penn Relays on Friday. That is rare. Bullis typically sits first or second prior to the final leg. Not this time.
Although Wilson was unable to complete a remarkable comeback, falling just short of Jamaica’s Kingston College, he made up for lost time. The 17-year-old phenom ran a 43.99-second anchor leg.
Bullis finished second to Kingston but the feat was far more impressive than the result. It was the fastest 4X400 time by any high school team in history. Wilson’s blazing fast final lap helped to break a 40-year-old national high school record.
Bullis’ time of 3:06.31 was more than one full second faster than Hawthorne’s 3:07.40 at the Texas Relays in 1985. The gold medalist was immediately mobbed by fans after the run.
Quincy Wilson Splits 43.99s in the Championship of America 4 by 400m final🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/gxfpKjrU7a
— Omilia Sports (@omiliasports) April 25, 2025
Wilson was not thinking about the record when he took the baton. The only thing on his mind was the four teams ahead of him.
I’ve been on the big stage, so I said if they had any pressure, if they were nervous, put it all on me.That’s the best thing I can do because if they’re going to throw the pressure on me, I’m going to throw it back on God […]
I just think about going back and looking at all the records — this is probably one of the hardest records that’s ever been broken. To be able to break it down with the best guys — and we didn’t just break it, we broke it by a whole second — that shows [the] dedication and hard work of each and one of us.
— Quincy Wilson
He had an absolute blast.
Is it fun? I wouldn’t be doing it if it wasn’t fun! Yes, it’s fun. I love it.
— Quincy Wilson
All of the talk about burnout is no longer necessary. Quincy Wilson is feeling just fine!