EUGENE, Ore. — It's been an exciting two weeks for North Carolina A&T's track and field team.
Last weekend, the Aggie men's and women's teams finished in the top 5 at the NCAA division one national championships, bringing home the title in four events.
This past weekend, the Aggies were on full display in Eugene, Oregon at the United States Track & Field qualifiers.
After a weekend of the nation's best athletes battling it out for a chance to represent our country in Tokyo this summer, two Aggies will help represent our country in the men's 400 meter.
Coach Duane Ross, who competed in the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, is now coaching four athletes that will compete in Tokyo, including his son Randolph Ross Jr.
"Of course we had a very exciting weekend. Any time you can put an athlete on the Olympic team that's just history in the making, "Duane Ross said. "It is very hard to make the Olympic team, trust me, I know. I'm just excited for these guys, for North Carolina A&T, and the city of Greensboro as a whole."
Duane Ross talked about how special it was to have his son reach the highest level of track of field on father's day.
"My son sent me a text early Sunday morning, and it said 'Happy Father's Day dad, now let's go make this trip to Tokyo a reality.' And that's when I knew he was going to make it happen," Duane Ross said.
Duane Ross' son, Randolph Ross Jr., qualified for Tokyo by finishing third in the 400 meter final.
"This has been a dream ever since we've been growing up. This is as far as it gets in the track and field world," Randolph Ross Jr. said. "Having the honor of going and representing your country, but not going alone, but to have someone you've been running with since high school go with you is just unbelievable."
His teammate on their national championship 4x400 meter relay, Trevor Stewart finished fourth, also qualifying him for Tokyo.
"This is definitely a big moment, not just for me but for our HBCU as well. It's definitely going to project us farther into the eye view and it's gone be something to watch," Randolph Ross Jr. said.