CHRISTIE Nick

General
DOING DAD PROUD
His father passed away in April 2021, and Nicholas intends to compete at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo in his memory. "Back in April my dad passed away and before that I had been quite a hardass about [COVID-19] rules in place and I have not dealt with his passing well at all. He wanted to watch my 50km back in February [2021] and I told him no because spectators weren't allowed. I didn't know that would be the last race I'd ever be able to have him at, he always struck me as an immortal or something. Making the team [for the Olympic Games] gives it all meaning, it wasn't for nothing back in February. More than anything he always wanted me to be the best version of myself. Right now I may not be the best in the world at what I do, but today marks the beginning of a new story. I'm on the startline. Hope I can do my dad proud." (Instagram profile, 05 Jul 2021)

OLYMPIC INCLUSION
Despite winning the 20km race walk at the 2021 US Olympic Trials, he had to wait for a week for results from around the world to see if he had made the cut as one of the 60 athletes to line up at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. Sitting 61st on the list, he secured qualification after Great Britain decided not to include athlete Cameron Corbishley in their squad, with Christie publicly reaching out to his competitor on social media. "I hope I can do Cameron Corbishley justice because it was his position that ultimately put me in the Olympic quota. So if you want someone else to root for the next few years, he's your man. Hope we can have some good head-to-heads in future races and this day can feel truly earned. Cam, if you ever want to race in the USA give me a call and we'll figure out how to make it happen." (mbuspartans.com, 14 Jul 2021; Instagram profile, 05 Jul 2021)