Olympic gold medal winner Rai Benjamin takes victory lap round hometown of Mount Vernon
MOUNT VERNON, New York (WABC) — On Tuesday an Olympian went from operating laps on the Paris Olympics to taking a victory lap in his hometown of Mount Vernon.
Rai Benjamin is the proud proprietor of three Olympic gold medals after including two to his assortment earlier this summer season. Now the runner is slowing down and taking a while to get pleasure from a hero’s honor the place all of his coaching started.
The 27-year-old gained his medals within the 400-meter hurdles and the 4×400 relay and his glittering prizes have been on full show as he rode on a motorcade that made its means by way of town – passing by all 16 faculties within the district.
Benjamin was a nationwide champion at USC and in addition gained gold within the 2020 Tokyo video games, however it began for him at Mount Vernon Excessive Faculty.
“I caught with it and I believed in myself and I relied on everybody else round me, and I can not specific sufficient how a lot with out everybody else, I would not be right here,” Benjamin stated.
The festivities ended at Memorial Stadium the place Benjamin picked up much more {hardware}: proclamations and a key to town. There, he delivered a easy message.
“I feel it is necessary for everybody to see that good issues come out of Mount Vernon,” Benjamin stated.
The world in entrance of Memorial Stadium has been formally renamed Rai Benjamin Plaza for the hometown hero that has made a metropolis really feel good as gold.
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