UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State track & field’s Handal Roban was selected to compete in the 800-meter run at the 2024 Paris Olympics for his home country of St. Vincent & the Grenadines, as announced by World Athletics and confirmed by the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Olympic Committee.
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Roban earned the qualification based on universality place and will toe the line in his first Olympic games this summer against the top 800-meter talent in the world. Associate head coach Ryan Foster will travel to Paris with Roban as his coach for team St. Vincent & the Grenadines.
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In 2023, Foster coached Roban at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary to a 33rd place finish in the 800-meters. The St. Vincent & the Grenadines 800-meter national record holder returns to the big stage in 2024, eager to improve on his placement in the world standings from a year ago.
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With Penn State, Roban is a four-time 800-meter All-American with just two collegiate seasons under his belt. In 2023, the middle-distance star won bronze in the 800 during both the indoor and outdoor NCAA seasons, establishing himself as the next in a long line of successful Nittany Lion half-milers. This year, Roban moved to No. 2 in Penn State history in the indoor 800-meter run, now trailing only Isaiah Harris on the list. His 1:45.36 mark from the Penn Relays Summer Classic in June is third on Penn State’s outdoor list.
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Roban becomes the third Penn State athlete to earn qualification to this summer’s Olympics, joining 200-meter NCAA Champion Cheickna Traore (200m, Ivory Coast), and 2024 shot put world leader Joe Kovacs (shot put, USA).
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