Iona College senior Gerom Solis is one of the many athletes affected by the widespread cancellation of sports worldwide, but in a different way compared to his teammates.

Solis has run for the Gaels for all four of his years at Iona, with a plethora of wins and honors under his belt, including first place at the 200-meter Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships in 2020 and the 200-meter Fordham Season Opener in 2019. He has also represented his home country of Honduras at the International Association of Athletics Federations World U20 Championships in 2018.

Solis was hoping to represent his country again, only at the biggest stage in the world for track and field: the Olympics. He was an Olympic hopeful, aiming to represent his home country in the world-famous international competition that was supposed to be held this summer. Those goals were all thrown out of the window when the Olympic committee announced the postponement of the competitions.

“There’s just so many emotions,” Solis said in an interview with News12 Brooklyn. “There’s anger because I put all of this work in and it’s disappointing, but you got to do what’s best for everybody and postponing [the Olympics] is best for everybody.”

Despite knowing that the postponement is the best possible solution to stop the spread of the coronavirus, the frustration Solis feels is ever-present. He has trained all year for this chance and was hoping to use the college season as a form of practice to get in shape for the Central American Championships.

“When you have a plan and then you don’t achieve that plan or have the chance to go through that plan, it’s just so disappointing,” Solis said.

Even with the change in plans, Solis will still train for qualification of the 2021 Olympics in hopes of representing his home country after graduating this summer from Iona College.