Kyree King and his green hair ready for U.S. Olympic Team Trials: I want 'to cause a little chaos, stir things up a bit'
Just call Kyree King 'the Joker.'
No, really. He'd like you to.
The American sprinting star has dyed his hair green this season, with a Joker theme in mind as he looks to claim a surprise spot on Team USA this week (21-30 June) at the U.S. Olympic Trials - track and field in Eugene, Oregon.
"I came to throw my name in the hat and cause a little chaos, stir things up a little bit," King told Olympics.com on Thursday (20 June), cracking a wry smile.
"It's nice to know that we're almost in another golden era of U.S. sprinting and I like being a part of it," the 29-year-old King added. "I'm here to be the moment, I want to mix that 'big three' up. I feel like I'm not new to being the underdog or not being the favourite."
Three years after King failed to make the finals here in the 100m and was seventh in the 200m, he'll compete in both events in Eugene, after registering top-three finishes in both races during this season's Diamond League (including at this same venue for the 200 at the Prefontaine Classic).
While all eyes will be on the likes of reigning world champion in the 100m and 200m Noah Lyles, as well as Kenny Bednarek, Christian Coleman, Fred Kerley and others, King says he considers himself as part of that conversation.
"I've been in a lot of those races and I've been competing with those guys," he said. "That's the big thing about the U.S.: Anything before June doesn't matter. Olympic Trials are here, so anything before then doesn't really matter. You have to come and do it here. If you don't do it here then you're going to be at home while everyone else is in Paris."
Kyree King: 'Sometimes the nerves fuel you to something big'
It's a homecoming of sorts for King, who spent his senior season collegiately at the University of Oregon. Hayward Field can feel like comfortable confines, but he says he still has butterflies beating around his stomach before the men's 100m gets underway on Saturday (22 June).
"You try to come here and do exactly what you've been doing all year, maybe make it a little faster. Other than that, everyone is a little nervous here," King explained. "If you come and think you're the only one who is nervous, you're going to be in trouble. Nerves are normal."
King will likely need personal bests in both the 100 and 200m to make the Paris team in competitive U.S. fields, with his PB in the 100 (9.96) coming at this very track at the U.S. nationals in 2022, when he finished sixth.
"If you care about something, then you're going to be nervous about it when it finally happens... you just can't be scared," he added. "Scared is a different emotion than being nervous. Scared means that you're not prepared, but nerves are normal. Sometimes the nerves fuel you to something big, so that's important [to feel]."
King would like his first-ever trip to Paris to be the trip of a lifetime: The Olympic Games Paris 2024.
"This is a big goal; this has been on the calendar since I didn't make the last Olypmic team," he said of the U.S. Trials. "That's what I've been dreaming of, so I think now is the time to make it happen."
Kyree King on showing off personality: 'You have to have fun out here'
Lyles, the de facto leader in U.S. men's sprinting presently, has not shied away from showing off his love for all things fashion, cartoons, music - and more.
King has had plenty of fun with his hair stylings in the past, too, including a bleach look last year that featured blue flames on the back.
It takes the edge off, he said, about his follicle fun.
"You have to have fun out here," he said. "We don't have a lot of a chance to show personality. We're on the track for 10 or 20 seconds, so we don't have the opportunity to show who we really are. This is a big things for me; I like to have fun with it. It takes things away from the track, away from the nerves."