(WXMI) — Kalamazoo native Heath Baldwin got his Olympic sendoff at Kalamazoo Hackett High School on Thursday. Baldwin won the Decathlon at the U.S. Olympic Trials with a personal best 8,625 points. His score is the sixth-best in the world this year and third all-time for collegiate athletes.
Baldwin's friends and family gathered at Kalamazoo Hackett to celebrate Baldwin and send him off to Paris.
From Heath Baldwin:
"It's pretty wild to see all these people that I know. It's just insane to see all of the support that I am getting, it's pretty incredible to see. Some familiar faces and then some unfamiliar faces that support me. I haven't been back to Hackett in like a year, its been a while, so it's kind of a full circle moment."
On if he will have any nerves heading into the Olympics:
"The more people that are there, that is only going to help me. I'm a big adrenaline guy, I think the adrenaline plays to my advantage. I get more nervous talking at an event like this than I do at the Olympics. Once I get out on the track everything just feels natural to me."
He is joined on the Olympic team by 2020 Olympian Zach Ziemek in second place with 8,516 points and Harrison Williams in third place with 8,384 points.
Baldwin graduated from Kalamazoo Hackett in 2019, when he was named the 2019 Mr. Michigan Track & Field. He's gone on to rack up a ton of accolades as a Spartan.
Heath Baldwin accolades at Michigan State:
MSU Athletics George Alderton Male Athlete of the Year
NCAA Indoor First Team All-American
NCAA Outdoor First Team All-American
Big Ten Indoor Heptathlon Champion
NCAA Championships Qualifier
USTFCCCA All-Academic Athlete
Big Ten Distinguished Scholar
Academic All-Big Ten
Broke the heptathlon and decathlon school records
Broke the javelin throw school record during the outdoor season
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