Troy Doris is an American triple jumper of Guyanese descent. Troy was born in Chicago, Illinois to Guyanese parents who both came to the United States at a young age.
Doris has always been passionate about his sport. Since the age of 2, Doris has battled severe asthma. At the beginning of his sports career, this led him to withdraw from various competitions and sports all together. Through his childhood and teenage years, Doctors advised Doris that he should not participate in sports, only light physical activity, as it would lead to further asthma related complications. Doris persevered to become a 2 time high school State Champion, and 2 time high school National Champion in the Long and Triple Jump. After high school, Doris continued his education and athletic career at the University of Iowa where he became a 4 time BIG 10 Conference Champion and a 4 time NCAA Division 1 All American.
How was the experience being an Olympic competitor and being in the presence of the greatest athletes from around the world?
There are so many words you can try to use to describe the experience and it gets you wrapped up in so many emotions. Simply put, it was the best thing to ever happen to me in my life and will be for an extremely long time. Being surrounded by more than 11,000 of the world’s greatest athletes is an unreal feeling in itself. You see passion from a different perspective in regards to watching other sports you’re not familiar with. Being one of that large number was already a satisfactory feeling. Aside from that, being able to showcase my talent in front of the world, and making a final, was a huge accomplishment and history for Guyana and myself.
What was the hardest part about competing in the Olympics?
Physically, you’re in the best shape you can be in when you arrive to the games. So there shouldn’t be any major issues in that regard. There’s not much you can do to improve in the 2 weeks you’re at the games and training, the most you can do is maintain your form and stay physically strong. One point I can make to that, though, is competing multiple days, back to back, if you advance to the finals. That’s a physical challenge you just HAVE to be ready for, you can’t prepare for that. The mental preparation and readiness is the hardest thing. If you aren’t mentally prepared, you will fight against yourself in the competition and make silly mistakes. Being mentally strong and focusing on what you know how to do makes for a natural, well executed competition.
When you were ranked seventh, what was the first emotion you felt?
I was excited. Placing top 10 at the Olympic games is extremely difficult. Getting passed that first day making it into the finals was an accomplishment in itself. Not only did I make the finals, but also I made history for the country of Guyana, being the first person ever to make an Olympic Final. So the emotions were high but of course had to keep my composure and focus on my goals. I didn’t want to be content with just qualifying for the finals. The support I received after the first day was extremely motivating and that fueled me to perform.
How do you motivate yourself to keep competing at a high level, and was there ever a moment you felt like giving up?
To motivate myself, I always think about WHY I’m doing this. I always think about my mom and my late grandmother no matter what, and see how happy she is for me to be doing what I do. My Grandmother was a big reason why I decided to jump for Guyana. She wished to see me jump in the Olympics, but she wasn’t able to have the experience because of her unfortunate passing in 2015. Her happiness was a big motivator and I know she would be extremely proud of me. Motivating others also motivates me to do well and represent myself the best that I can. Not only and I representing me, but the whole country of Guyana has my back and I want to produce the best result for them. The things that motivate me are seeing how my situation can benefit someone else.
Within the 4 years from graduating college until now, there have been major bumps in the Road to Rio. I’m also not expecting the next 4 years to be smooth either. There were times I wanted to quit and work a full time profession, but what I’m doing is once in a lifetime, and it’d be a shame to waste talent because of a short-term situation that may hinder my performance.
What is one major piece of advice that you would give to the young, aspiring athletes?
If you want to do something, just do it. You never want to look back and have a regret that you didn’t purse sports as serious as you wanted because of your fear of success or security that the sport has. Always ask questions and advice from the people who are where you want to be so you have the proper guidance. Also, you absolutely must stay persistent and what you really want will manifest as long as you put a true investment into it.
MOST IMPORTANTLY, HAVE FUN WITH IT. Keep it competitive with your friends and make it fun.