Jamaican sprinter tracks down volunteer who helped him win gold

Jamaican 110m hurdler Hansle Parchment narrowly avoided embarrassment thanks to a volunteer who gave him money for a taxi after he accidentally traveled to an aquatics arena instead of Tokyo's Olympic Stadium on the day of his race at the recent Tokyo Olympics.

Parchment went viral after tracking down the woman, repaying her for the cab, showing her the gold medal she helped him win the following day.

"I saw this volunteer and I had to beg… and she actually gave me some money to take one of the taxis. And that's how I was able to get to the warm-up track at the stadium and with enough time to warm up to compete," he said in a video recorded during the Games, which has attracted global attention.

"You were instrumental in me getting to the final that day," he told the volunteer after locating her.

Always be kind to each other pic.twitter.com/j1XvHRta4G Hansle Parchment, OLY (@ParchmentHansle) August 7, 2021

Parchment finished second that day, narrowly qualifying for the final where he stunned world champion Grant Holloway in a season-best time of 13.04 seconds.

The volunteer was taken aback as Parchment showed her the gold medal. "Really, you got this?" she can be heard saying in the video.

Parchment also gifted her an official tracksuit of the Jamaican team.

As a way to thank her, Edmund Bartlett, Jamaica's minister for tourism, has invited the young woman to the Caribbean nation.

"No matter where in the world she is, we want to reciprocate the kindness shown to one of our own," he told local newspaper The Gleaner.