New track superstar is born as Andre De Grasse wins gold in 100m at Pan Am Games

TORONTO – Six weeks ago few outside of the most hardcore athletics observers knew who Andre De Grasse was. Now he’s about to become a household name. The 20-year-old sprinter from Scarborough continued his meteoric rise to fame on Wednesday when he won gold in the 100-metre dash at the Pan Am Games in Toronto.

De Grasse won the crown jewel of track-and-field events in a time of 10.05, narrowly edging Ramon Gittens of the Barbados, and Antoine Adams of St. Kitts and Nevis. The victory capped a whirlwind month for De Grasse who burst on to the scene and into Canadian consciousness in June when he won both the 100 and 200 at the NCAA national championships.

“Getting to compete is a once in a lifetime opportunity, especially at home in front of fans and family and friends,” De Grasse said after his race. “This is one of the greatest moments of my life.”

For a few seconds it didn’t look like it was going to happen. De Grasse was slow out of the blocks and trailed until late in the race. But he found an extra gear and leaned across the finish line for the win.

“I couldn’t really think about [the slow start], I just had to keep pushing and try to execute the last part of my race,” he said. “It was pretty tight. I tried to lean and when I saw the [camera] was on me I was like ‘Ok, I think I won.’ ”

Since his NCAA victory in the 100, which came in an eye-popping time of 9.75, De Grasse has been a media darling of sorts and has had lots of attention, and pressure, lavished on him. He’s trying to stay grounded through it all, though he admits he’s enjoying the attention.

“I try not to let it get to me, I just try to focus on my race. My coach does a great job of helping me.”

Peter Eriksson, the head coach of Athletics Canada, has been instrumental in keeping De Grasse focused.

“I think we had a pretty good plan in place,” Eriksson said. “We haven’t been very accommodating to media because we wanted him to focus on the final and we’ll do the same in the other races too. It’s just for him to keep his feet on the ground. There’s a lot of pressure being at home.”

De Grasse is far from finished, both at the Pan Am Games and with his season. He will be part of Canada’s 4x100m relay team beginning on Friday. Then comes the biggest event of the year – the world championships in Beijing later in August. At the worlds, the main qualifier for the 2016 Rio Olympics, De Grasse will compete in the 100 and 200.

“Our goal this whole season has been the world championships,” Eriksson said. “This is a stepping stone. Great things might happen.”

The gold at the Pan Am Games – on a track not far from where he first began sprinting – is a great start. He is the most hyped athletics prospects in Canada in years, and at 20 already being compared to the likes of Donovan Bailey and Bruny Surin. Bailey, of course, won gold in the 100 at the 1996 Olympics in a then-world-record time of 9.84. He also won gold in the 4x100 relay along with Surin.

Canadian sprinting fell off the radar for the most part after that. The beginning of a resurgence came in London in 2012 when the Canadian 4x100 team won a surprising bronze, behind the powerhouse Jamaican and American teams, only to be disqualified for a lane violation.

De Grasse is intent on returning Canadian sprinting to its former glory. The Pan Am Games may be a minor event in the grand scheme but it was an important step, in a pressure-filled situation.

“I got my first senior international medal, and at home,” De Grasse said. “That’s a great feeling. I think [the crowd] gave me an extra boost of energy, the crowd was amazing.”

The 4x100 semi-final heats are on Friday with the final on Saturday. Andre De Grasse will be in those races. Remember that name.

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Ian Denomme is an editor and writer for Yahoo Sports. Email him at denomme@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter.