Super Bowl 2020: Kansas City Chiefs' Tyreek Hill targeting Olympics
- Published
Hill won 4x100m relay gold at the World Junior Athletics Championships in 2012
For most NFL players, playing in the Super Bowl would be job done for the year.
But not for Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill. He wants to also test his speed against the world's best athletes at the Tokyo Olympics.
"Hopefully, after this season, if I'm healthy and my mind is still in the right place, I really want to try to qualify for some Olympic teams," said Hill, who will form a key part of the Chiefs' offense against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
But this isn't just a pipe dream for Hill. Nicknamed "Cheetah", the 25-year-old has some serious speed.
A sprinter in high school before switching to American football, he has a top speed of 21.33mph and is the only player on the NFL's Madden 2020 video game with a speed rating of 99.
He once clocked 9.89 seconds over 100m but high tailwinds meant his time didn't stand. His personal best of 10.19 seconds came in 2012, but he will need to lower that to 10.05secs in order to compete at the US Olympic trials in June.
"But the thing is, I weigh like 195 [pounds] right now. Back in high school, when I ran a 9.9, I was like 175," said Hill.
"If I do it, it would be me changing my whole diet, changing everything that I've been doing to get to this point where I am now."
If Hill needs more inspiration he need only look toward the opposing sideline on Sunday for 49ers wide receiver Marquise Goodwin.
Goodwin, 29, who will miss the Super Bowl through injury, competed in long jump for the United States at the 2011 IAAF World Championships and the 2012 Summer Olympics and won silver at the 2015 PanAmerican Games.