Chris "The Fireman" Brown will run in his fifthSummer Olympic Games this month in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Brown is scheduled to compete in both the open 400m and the 4x400m relay. (Photo: File)

Former Norfolk State University track star Chris "The Fireman" Brown will look to win another medal to cap his storied international career when he competes in his fifth Summer Olympic Games this month in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Brown, who was the Spartans' first male athlete to earn National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I All-America honors in an individual event in 2000, has represented The Bahamas in every Summer Olympics since 2000. He is scheduled to again compete in both the open 400 meters (m) and the 4x400m relay in Rio. Brown placed fourth in the 400m in both the 2008 and 2012 Olympics, and helped The Bahamas men's 4x400m team to a medal finish at three Olympics - bronze in 2000, silver in 2008 and gold in 2012.

The 37-year old Brown will also be making history this month. According to the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) website, no male 400-meter runner has ever competed in five Olympic Games.

"If you would have told me 20 years ago that I'd run in five Olympics, I would have told you that you are out of your mind," Brown said with a laugh. "I wouldn't think that would have been possible with the four-year gap in between, but you just have to stay humble and hungry, and trust yourself and your coaching. Along with staying healthy and keeping God in the mix, those are the main ingredients."

Brown has remained very competitive internationally despite specializing in an event usually dominated by younger athletes. He ran a personal best 400 time of 44.40 seconds in 2008, but clocked a 44.54 just last year. Brown captured a gold medal at the IAAF World Indoor Championship in 2010, and has won five individual medals at that global meet. He has been a mainstay on The Bahamas' 4x400m relay team, culminated by his lead-off leg in 2012, when his team set a national record of 2:56.72, and broke the United States' 60-year stranglehold on the event.

The men's 400m heats will begin on August 12, with semifinals on August 13 and the final on August 14. Heats in the 4x400m relay will be contested on August 19, and the final on August 20.

Article courtesy of nsuspartans.com

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