Florida Gator alums Anna Hall and Parker Valby give valiant efforts in Olympic debuts

As the Paris Olympics are in their final weekend, a couple of Florida Gator alums have had to bide their time before making their debut at these games.

They fell short of winning a medal, but both gained valuable experience that should help propel them for the Los Angeles Olympics in four years.

Anna Hall gets 5th

We had highlighted Anna Hall prior to the Olympics as one of Florida's best chances to win a medal in track and field. Hall was the 2022 national champion in the Heptathlon while with Florida, and won the silver medal at the 2023 world championships in the event.

Hall entered the second day of the competition in 3rd, and still had her best event to compete in (the 800 meter run). But day three also featured her weakest event, the javelin. Hall had a personal best throw in the event, but it was called a scratch when she hopped across the foul line while tracking her throw. That mistake cost her about 40 points.

Combined with her long jump not being her best, and Hall wound up finishing 5th in the competition.

Considering Hall is coming off knee surgery, and this was her first Olympics, it was still a solid showing. After the event, she went to social media to express her optimism and personal disappointment.

Parker Valby gets 11th

Her journey to get to Paris was filled with a bit of mystery after the Olympic Trials as to whether she was going to be on the team, but Parker Valby had a respectable Olympic debut in the 10K.

Valby, who won five national titles during the 2023/24 season with Florida, ran a smart race that let the other runners do the work up front while she bided her time along the rail in the back.

After a slow first 5K (by Olympic standards), the pace started to wind up and Valby made sure she kept moving up as others fell off.

With a little under a mile to go in the race, Valby tried to move to the front and throw down her patented surge that won her countless races as a Gator.

However, this time, instead of NC State and Colorado at the front, it was Ethiopia and Kenya. Valby's move was immediately covered, and by the time the final kick happened with under two laps to go, Valby fell off the main pack.

Still, her 11th-place finish should grant her valuable experience and be a sign that she is able to hang at the international level. By the time Los Angeles rolls around, Valby will have a training schedule better aligned with the international circuit than the NCAA calendar.