One-on-one with Niesha Burgher ahead of first Olympic Games

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- Former Miner Niesha Burgher is exactly 16 days away from making her first Olympic appearance competing in the 200-meter.

“Knowing that I train and I prepare, I know I can compete against anyone," Burgher said. "I don’t compare myself to anyone, I’m the best too so at the end of the day, I’ll just show up.”

At the Jamaican Olympic trials, Burgher finished first in her heat in the prelims recording a time of 22.90. In the finals, she went up against the second fastest women in history in the 200-meter, Shericka Jackson. Burgher ran a personal best of 22.39 and finished third to punch her ticket to the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.

“She came off the curve slightly in the lead," Burgher's coach Rohsaan Griffin said. "She made a move and didn’t commit to it and that’s when Shericka started coming back in the race and I was like ok, we have something good here. She ran a personal best so I knew we were going to Paris.”

“Everything happened at the right time," Burgher said. "This is something that I’ve been praying for, telling my parents like I’m going to make it and seeing my dream come true is just a blessing.”

Aiming to become an Olympian is already enough motivation in itself. However, Burgher had someone special in the stands at the Olympic trials who gave her an extra boost of drive.

"This was my first time my dad watched me race," Burgher said. "He was always busy and I remember last time I went to the trials he got in an accident so he couldn't make it. After watching me qualify for the Olympics, he was happy and kept smiling. He couldn't continue the legacy he wanted so when he saw me doing what he had loved, it made him really happy."

The 200-meter prelims are set to be on August 4th in Paris.