TOKYO, Japan — "I like Skittles and Snickers a lot," says Olympian Garrett Scantling. But, he says, "No candy. No sodas until after the Olympics."
Scantling is a decathlete from Episcopal High in Jacksonville and the University of Georgia. He tried out for the U.S. track team for Rio back in 2016 but came in fourth. He needed to finish in the top three to make the team.
Major disappointment. But he rallied, and his coach at UGA encouraged him to go for the decathlon for Tokyo. And he made it.
Now Scantling says he is honored to be an Olympian. And he is excited Nike has signed him. They give him a lot of track shoes to choose from, but his favorites might just be described, he says, as 'oranger than orange." Another go at it? "Highlighter orange," he says.
It's not just for flash on the track. The spikes are designed for different events of the decathlon. He will keep changing shoes during the competition.
"These spikes are for distance, the 1500," he says. It's a new design from Nike, Scantling explains, as he points to the bottom of the shoe. "Here's the pad right here. It forces you to stay up on your toe." The shoes are less flat than in years prior.
Scantling smiles; "Hopefully, it will make me fast," he says.
