JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The excitement surrounding the 2020 Summer Tokyo Olympics has only been fueled by delay.
In March 2020, the announcement was made that the Tokyo Olympics were rescheduled due to concerns over COVID-19.
The games, which are still officially retaining the name 'Tokyo Summer Olympics 2020' kick off July 23, 2021, with the closing ceremony taking place Aug. 9
Despite the delay, First Coast athletes have been training hard to make it to the games this summer and there's a good chance that some of them will bring home gold.
Here's a list of all the athletes from the First Coast competing in Tokyo.
Kelley O'Hara
- Sport: Soccer
- Birthplace: Jacksonville, Florida
- School: Stanford
- Current Residence: Washington. D.C.
Kelley O’Hara, 32, was born in Jacksonville, Florida. She began her soccer career as a forward at Stanford.
When The National Women's Soccer League first began, O’Hara spent four seasons with New Jersey’s Sky Blue before landing with Utah Royals FC. She was then traded to the Washington Spirit in 2020.
O'Hara is a two-time Olympian, going for the first time in 2012 and a second time in 2016. Now headed into her third World Cup, O’Hara is now a veteran who hopes to help lead the USWT to success.
Michelle Moultrie
- Sport: Softball
- Birthplace: Jacksonville, Florida
- School: University of Florida
- Current Residence: Jacksonville, Florida
The road to Tokyo began in Jacksonville for Michelle Moultrie. She began playing softball at the Mandarin Sports Association and would later play for the University of Florida as a walk-on. Small beginnings for someone who would leave Gainesville as SEC Player of the Year.
She also currently holds 4 single-season records at Florida.
The four-time World Cup of Softball Gold Medalist says the opportunity to represent the United States in Tokyo for softball is an honor.
Caeleb Dressel
- Sport: Swimming
- Birthplace: Orange Park, Florida
- School: University of Florida
- Current Residence: Micanopy, Florida
He's often called the most talented male swimmer in the world. In Rio, at his very first Olympics, Caeleb Dressel won two gold medals. Then the Gator swimmer was the first man in American history to break 18 seconds in the 50 free at an NCAA meet. Dressel made headlines around the planet at the World Championships in South Korea when he broke Michael Phelp's 100 fly world record.
Training for the Olympics in Tokyo at his Alma Mater, the University of Florida, Dressel told First Coast News he hopes to continue to make his family proud.
Dressel will compete in the 50-meter freestyle, 100-meter freestyle and 100-meter butterfly. He may also compete in relay events.
Ryan Murphy
- Sport: Swimming
- Birthplace: Palos Heights, Illinois
- School: University of California, Berkeley
- Hometown: Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida
There's something in the water in Jacksonville. The First Coast is known for its Olympic swimming talent and Ryan Murphy is one of the best.
A back-to-back-to-back national champion in backstroke is from right here in our own backyard. Former Ponte Vedra resident and Bolles School graduate Ryan Murphy is a three-time Olympic gold medal winner and hopes to add to that in Tokyo.
He will be competing in the 100-meter backstroke and the 200-meter backstroke.
Garrett Scantling
- Sport: Track and Field
- School: University of Georgia
- Birthplace: Jacksonville, Florida
- Current Residence: Athens, Georgia
It's a comeback story of a lifetime. Garrett Scantling, a graduate of Episcopal in Jacksonville, tried to make the Olympic team five years ago to compete in Rio. He missed the opportunity.
"He doesn't like the 1500," Sandy Roberts told First Coast News as she spoke about her grandson. "And that was his undoing at the Olympic trials."
But Scantling didn't give up. In 2019 he reportedly left his financial services job in Jacksonville and went to Georgia in order to concentrate on decathlon again. His hard work paid off.
"I am so proud of him. I am so happy for him," Roberts said.
Eddie Alvarez
- Sport: Baseball
- School: Christopher Columbus HS
- Birthplace: Miami
- Current Residence: Jacksonville, Florida
Eddy Alvarez grew up playing baseball and speed skating, and turned down a college baseball scholarship to pursue his Olympic dream. Alvarez didn’t just make it, he medaled in the 5,000-meter relay.
Does he look familiar? Alvarez was assigned to the Triple-A Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp to begin the 2021 season
Andre De Grasse
- Sport: Track
- Current Residence: Jacksonville, Florida
For Andre de Grasse, the wait for gold finally ended. The Canadian sprinter, a Northeast Florida resident, finally earned his spot atop the Olympic podium with victory in Wednesday's men's 200-meter dash at the Tokyo Olympic Stadium.
Running from lane six, de Grasse stormed down the stretch to overtake early leader Noah Lyles of the United States and achieve a personal-best time of 19.62 seconds.
Jake Fishman
- Sport: Baseball
- Current Residence: Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp left-handed pitcher Jake Fishman was named to Team Israel’s Olympic roster for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Fishman will play in international competition for the first time in his career after being on the reserve roster for Team Israel in the 2017 World Baseball Classic. Fishman obtained Israeli citizenship in November of 2019 to become eligible to compete in the Olympic games.
Nearby Florida Standouts
Name: Katrina Young
- Sport: Diving
- Birthplace: Shoreline, Washington
- School: Florida State University
- Currently lives: Tallahassee, Florida
Name: Nick Lucena
- Sport: Beach Volleyball
- Birthplace: Davie, Florida
- School: Florida State University
- Currently Lives: Tallahassee, Florida
Name: Kieran Smith
- Swimming
- Born in: Ridgefield, Connecticut
- School: UF
- Lives in: Gainesville, Florida
Name: Grant Holloway
- Sport: Track and Field
- Born in: Chesapeake, Virginia
- School: UF
- Lives in: Gainesville, Florida
Name: Marquis Dendy
- Sport: Track and Field
- Born in: Middletown, Delaware
- School: UF
- Lives in: Gainesville, Florida
Name: Taylor Manson
- Sport: Track and Field
- Born in: East Lansing, Michigan
- School: UF
- Lives in: Gainesville, Florida
Name: Will Claye
- Sport: Track and Field
- Born in: Tucson, Arizona
- School: UF
- Lives in: Gainesville, Florida