Being an athlete is a full-time career with all the training and competitions, but it’s not always a good-paying job. Government and commercial funding is a tricky thing and even if people are qualified to go to the Olympics, it’s not a guarantee that they will be funded, so athletes have to be creative.
Bored Panda has already talked about BMX racer Bethany Shriever, who launched a crowdfunder when she got invited to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics because the UK couldn’t sponsor her trip. And now a new story came up of an Australian sprinter, Riley Day, who worked at a grocery store to save money for the Olympics.
More info: Instagram
Olympian athlete Riley Day didn't have any sponsors who would help her go to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, but she did it anyway
Image credits: _rileyday
Riley Day is a 21-year-old Australian sprinter who began her career at the age of nine. Her highest achievement until competing in the Olympics was winning a gold medal in the 2017 Commonwealth Youth Games in the 200 meters and silver in the 100 meters.
She qualified for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics; however, as in the case of Bethany Shriever, no one was sponsoring Riley and she had to think of something to be able to compete in the biggest sporting event in the world.
Image credits: _rileyday
Riley got a job at a supermarket to save up money to fulfill her dream of competing in the Olympics
Image credits: Scott Lewis
In order to make her dream come true, Riley got a part-time job at an Australian supermarket, Woolworths. On the day of her competition, the supermarket chain posted on their LinkedIn: “We’re proud to see one of our team members represent Australia on the world stage. Good luck Riley, we can’t wait to see you on the track!”
They also shared a photo of Riley and a customer named John, who is 90 years old and visually impaired. Woolworths wrote that Riley is always helping him with his weekly shop and if she notices that John didn’t come, the Olympian calls him up to check in.
Image credits: Woolworths Supermarkets
Although Riley didn't enter the finals, she ran faster than ever and can be proud of her hard work
Image credits: Woolworths Supermarkets
Apparently, the hard work helping the customers and taking care of stock paid off, because we just saw Riley compete in the 200 m run. The athlete passed to the semi-finals, but her competition ended there.
However, Riley has a full right to be proud of herself because she funded her way to Tokyo all by herself and furthermore, she beat her own personal record and now her personal-best result is 22.56 seconds. And she achieved this by training while having to work!
Image credits: _rileyday
Riley herself was satisfied with her results and what is more, she is gaining more and more recognition
Image credits: _rileyday
While speaking to Channel 7, Riley couldn’t control her emotions, “Holy s**t! That was a much better race than this morning. I’ve got my groove. Now I hope it’s the fastest heat so I can get in the final. Because that is a massive PB. That’s awesome. I want to be the best and nothing is going to stop me from being the best.”
She also casually added that people can follow her on Instagram as she posts a lot there. From having 21,000 followers before that interview, Riley is now nearing 100k followers. So now, even though she doesn’t have sponsors to support her financially, she has huge emotional support from her admiring followers.
People who heard about Riley's story were happy for the athlete and were admiring her dedication
It is surely an inspirational story proving that if you want something, there are no obstacles that can truly stop you. But what do you think of Riley’s story? Do you think that it is nothing special as most people have to work several jobs or do you think that Riley was doing more than an average person would commit to? Leave us all of your thoughts in the comments!