TOKYO — Joe Fahnbulleh's parents emigrated from Liberia and settled in Minnesota. He became a track star for Hopkins High and now runs for the University of Florida.
At Hopkins, he was named the National High School Coaches Association boys' track and field athlete of the year and set four state records. At Florida, he became the 2021 outdoor national champion in the 200 meters by running a personal-best time of 19.91.
The form he honed in America, combined with his pride in his ancestral home, led to him becoming one of Liberia's flag-bearers during the Tokyo Olympics Opening Ceremony.
To those not on the field, the ceremony felt odd, because of the empty stands. Even many of the athletes didn't linger in the stadium as long as usual.
Fahnbulleh was too emotional to notice.
"Carrying the flag for the Opening Ceremony meant the world,'' he said. "Knowing I have people from my home country sending support and me carrying the flag for them is a feeling that is unmatched.''
"One memorable moment for me was exchanging pins with different countries before we walked. Until I got here, I didn't know pins were a big thing.''
Pins, and needles, as he walked across the National Stadium with the announcer pronouncing "Liberia'' in three different accents.
"The lack of fans did not bother me because I never experienced an Opening Ceremony with fans,'' Fahnbulleh, 19, said via Twitter via direct message, days before his first race here on Monday. "For the running aspect, not having fans will not bother me one bit. It'll just be another intense practice session. That's how I look at it to calm my nerves and be in the zone.''
He visits that zone often, and he'll need to do so again Monday night Minnesota time. Fahnbulleh is in a crowded field in the 200 meters, with runners in seven heats. World Athletics gives Fahnbulleh a top-20 ranking and lists him as Liberia's top entrant in the 200.
He is not the only Liberian sprinter with Minnesota ties in Tokyo. Emmanuel Matadi, 30, who is entered in the 100 and 200 meters, graduated from St. Paul Johnson High and attended Minnesota State Mankato. Matadi was the Liberian flag bearer for the 2016 Rio Olympics.
A strong showing Monday will earn Fahnbulleh a place in one of the three semifinal heats hours later (early Tuesday morning by the then in Minnesota). Earning a spot in Wednesday morning's final would continue this journey, all of it a boyhood dream coming true.
"Ever since I was a young boy, I've always wanted to visit Japan and go to the Olympics,'' he said. "I like the culture, architecture and the food. With this being my first trip out of the country, this is special.
"I'm hitting two birds with one stone. The people are so nice, the city skyline is killer and overall my experience has been nothing but grand.''
He planned to see basketball, skateboarding and diving while in Tokyo. Someday, he wants to see the place his parents were born.
"I haven't visited,'' he said. "But I want to.''
And Fahnbulleh tends to make things happen quickly.
