MIDLAND While Bryce Hoppel was competing in the finals of the men’s 800-meter run at the Paris Olympics, countless fans back home were cheering him on.
On Saturday, Midlanders gathered for a watch party at Momentum Bank Ballpark as fans showed up in droves to support their Olympic hero.
Supporters either gathered around the TV screens at the ballpark’s Diamond Club or watched outside in the stands from the jumbotron.
The event was put on by the City of Midland and the Midland RockHounds.
While Hoppel came up just one place short of a medal, fans were still left applauding as the Midland native completed his second appearance at the Summer Olympics while still finishing with a personal best time of one minute and 41.67 seconds.
It was also Hoppel’s best performance at the Summer Olympics after coming up short of making the finals at the last games in Tokyo.
Kenya’s Emmanuel Wanyonyi took the gold in a time of 1:41.19 while Canada’s Marco Arop was second in 1:41.20 and Algeria’s Djamel Sedjati finished third in 1:41.50.
Spain’s Mohamed Attaoui was fifth in a time of 1:42.08 while France’s Gabriel Tual was sixth in 1:42.14.
Botswana’s Tshepiso Masalela was seventh in 1:42.82 and Great Britain’s Max Burgin took eighth in 1:42.84.
Regardless, everyone in attendance was proud of Hoppel’s performance at this year’s Summer Olympics.
“It means a lot,” Midland City Council member John Norman said. “The Olympics are the biggest event for track and field and for Hoppel to be here for a second time, to be out there and have an opportunity to get on the stand is huge and we’re so proud of him.”
Proving that football’s not the only sport the Permian Basin is known for, Midland has had two different athletes compete in recent Summer Olympics.
Hoppel qualified for the 2021 Tokyo games and this year’s Paris Olympics while swimmer Natalie Hinds took the bronze medal three years ago.
“It says a lot,” Norman said. “It brings a lot of diversity out here. We have the oil and we have the football out here. We also have track and field and many other areas. We had a swimmer three years ago that competed so we have a lot of different talents. We’re a city of many talents.”
Norman said he’s proud of Hoppel’s performance.
“One thing I’d tell him is that I’m proud that he’s even there,” Norman said. “He’s worked so hard. He’s put the work in. I think he’s a great example to our young people that if you put your mind to it, even from a town like Midland, you can still make it to the world’s biggest stage. I’m proud of him.”
Britt Hirth was another supporter that was in attendance at the watch party.
“I think it says a lot about Bryce and his fortitude and determination because he’s been working towards this for a long time,” Hirth said. “It’s a dream of his and he’s put in the time and effort to make it happen.”
While there’s no official number of attendees, it was still a decent-sized turnout at Saturday’s watch party.
“it was huge,” Norman said. “I didn’t think there’d be that many people. I knew there was going to be a lot of people but I didn’t think we’d have this many. The line has wrapped around the corridor of the stadium. It’s a great turnout but that just goes to show the patriotism and the support we have for Bryce from the city to everyone involved and making it free for everyone. It’s an awesome deal.”
