Jamaican hurdler Hansle Parchment would have missed out on his Olympic gold medal if not for a woman who paid for his cab fare to get to the stadium, according to reports by People.
Parchment explained that while en route to semifinals in the 110 meter hurdles, he had been absentmindedly listening to his music before realizing he'd taken the wrong bus. He had to ask strangers for help so he could get to his event.
Thankfully, he ran into a woman named Trijana who gave him money to catch a taxi to get to the stadium. If she didn’t help him, he would have to take a bus back to the Olympic village and catch another bus to the race which would have made him late and thus, disqualified him.
In an Aug. 7 Instagram video, Parchment detailed how he almost missed his opportunity to compete.
"If I had done that, I wouldn't get there in time to even warm up. I had to find another way," Parchment said in the post. "I was trying to get one of the branded cars for the Games to take me, but these people are very strict and adhering to the rules, and I would have to have to book the car from beforehand to get it to leave.”
After seeing Trijana, he asked for her help.
"I saw this volunteer and I had to beg, 'cause of course she is not allowed to do much, and she actually gave me some money to take one of the taxis that are affiliated with the Games," he shared. "And that's how I was able to get to the warm-up in time, and had enough time to compete."
After winning the gold medal on Aug. 5, Parchment vowed to locate Trijana and show her how grateful he was for her generosity.
"I'm going to find her and show her my gold medal that I was able to get because she helped me,” he said.
When he found Trijana in the same location, Parchment gave her a Team Jamaica shirt and reimbursed her for the cab fare.
Trijana took to Instagram to post a selfie to show off her gift that was hand-delivered by Parchment.
"I'm full of gratitude to everyone. This is a gift from dear Hansle. ???????? ????," she captioned the post. "Perfect fit! Thank you so much dear Hansle!"
Because of her act of kindness, Trijana will receive an invitation to visit Jamaica where she will be hosted by the ministry team according to reports by The Jamaica Gleaner.
“It is selfless what she did; one would not know what the outcome would have been,” Edmund Bartlett, Jamaica’s tourism minister said. “No matter where in the world she is, we want to reciprocate the kindness shown to one of our own."
