September 19, 2024
MOUNT VERNON, Ga. (BP) — Stephen Roberts has seen his son, Daniel, finish first many times at the track.
It came with Hampton (Ga.) High School – state titles in the 100m and 300m hurdles and triple jump – and then at the University of Kentucky with a 2019 110m hurdles title. Even his second-place finish that same year in the NCAAs tied a 40-year-old record.
Like every track athlete, though, the Olympics remained the goal. Daniel did that too with the 2020 games held in Tokyo. However, he failed to make the finals. A resolve set in to get back, the same resolve Daniel took when a football injury to his right knee his senior year of high school shredded his ACL, LCL, meniscus and hamstring while partially tearing his PCL for good measure.
“He’s had so many adversities, you know, so many things that people wrote off and said he wouldn’t be able to do it. We just believe that if that’s in his heart and that’s what he wanted, God was going to make it happen,” said his mother, Melissa.
In talking about his son, Stephen sounds a lot like his other role as track coach at Brewton-Parker College.
“I just really want him to reach his dreams and goals,” he said. “I know what he can do if he executes and does what he’s supposed to do.”
In becoming a two-time Olympian in Paris, Daniel sprinted his way in the 110m hurdles to a silver medal. It took a photo finish to determine who crossed the line first between him and Jamaica’s Rasheed Broadbell.
The time difference was 3 thousandths of a second. That’s the same amount of time it takes for a housefly to flap its wings and faster than a honeybee.
“This one was sweeter because my wife and I were blessed with the opportunity to be in Paris,” Stephen said. “… We are so grateful to have been able to witness history in the making. God has been so faithful to us, and we are grateful for the stage He has set before our son.”
In one of his videos, Daniel talks about the mental and physical transition after his injury.
“I knew after the surgery [that] I’m not going to be the same athlete I was before,” he said. “Not necessarily in a good way or bad way. It’s just not going to be the same. My body is literally different than it was. I have
“So I just had to really, adjust, and make that change mentally that no matter what I was going to do my part in being the best athlete I can be now with this body I have.”
The biggest takeaway from the injury came from somewhere else, though.
“I learned … to always keep God first,” he said. “Track and field is something that I love. It’s my passion and a gift that God has blessed me with, but it can’t be my world. It has to be something that I use to glorify God, to impact people, bringing motivation and inspiration to the world.”
There are things you can coach, but effort isn’t one of them. In Daniel’s final video of practice before the Paris games, his coach and 1996 Olympic gold medalist Allen Johnson encouraged Daniel to come off the final hurdle hard for the finish line.
“And if you gotta,” said Johnson, before imitating a dive across the finish line, “across the line. I’m dead serious.”
“If I’ve got to, I definitely will,” said Daniel.
He did. The final lean for the silver was enough to send Daniel tumbling head over spikes.
After his victory lap around the Stade de France, track and field’s Paris venue, Daniel found his parents waiting to celebrate with him.
“I congratulated him and told him I was proud of him,” Stephen told Baptist Press. “But what I love most is how he honors God.
“His faith is what makes me most proud. It’s the most I can ask of as a father.”
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This story was first published by Baptist Press.
