Who is Jacory Patterson? All about the athlete who once loaded trucks at UPS and became National 400m champion

Jacory Patterson surprised everyone with his performance at the USATF Outdoor Championships held at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon. The 25-year-old sprinter has qualified for the Tokyo World Championships with a time of 44.16 seconds.

Patterson overcame the likes of Chris Bailey and Khaleb McRae to win the gold medal in the 400m finals at the USATF Nationals. For a man who once worked on the night shifts at UPS loading trucks, this is nothing less than phenomenal.

In his conversation with the media after winning the heats, Patterson reflected on his initial struggles as he said:

“If everything in life was easy, everybody would be at the top. But everybody’s not at the top. We’ve just got to understand everything won’t be smooth, green grass. There’s going to be some hills and some bumps and some potholes.”

Patterson used to work on the night shift at the UPS shipping store in Columbia, South Carolina. After taking a short nap, he would report to practice by 8:30 a.m., where he would train under the guidance of Alleyne Francique, a three-time Olympian who represented Grenada.

However, things changed for the better after he won the Grand Slam Track event in Miami. Patterson signed up with Nike in June 2025, after which he said goodbye to his job at UPS for good.

Early life and childhood of Jacory Patterson

Jacory Patterson was born to Jamey Patterson and Charlene Bolton on February 2, 2000. He was born and brought up in Columbia, South Carolina. Patterson attended Dreher High School, where he initially pursued both track and field & basketball. However, after he realized his true calling in athletics, he let go of basketball after completing the tenth grade.

Early career of Jacory Patterson

Jacory Patterson at the World Athletics Indoor Championships 2025 [Image Source: Getty]

Jacory Patterson initially pursued his higher studies at Virginia Tech, where he represented the track and field team of Virginia Tech, aka Virginia Tech Hokies, from 2019 to 2021. Patterson transferred to the University of Florida, where he represented the Florida Gators as a senior in the 2022 season. Patterson won a silver medal in the 400m event while and contributed to the bronze medal for the Florida Gators relay team in the men's 4x400m relay event.

Major achievements of Jacory Patterson

Patterson after winning the 4x400m relay at the World Indoor Athletics Championships 2025 [Image Source: Getty]

Jacory Patterson had attempted to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics by participating in the Olympic trials held in 2021. However, it was only by 2025 that the 25-year-old sprinter finally tasted glory on the world stage. Patterson stood sixth in the 200m event at the Miami leg of the Grand Slam Track League. However, he surprised everybody by clocking a world lead time of 43.98 seconds in the 400m event.

This was only the beginning, as Patterson went on to win the bronze medal in the individual 400m event at the World Indoor Athletics Championships held at Nanjing with a time of 45.54 seconds. Patterson went on to contribute to Team USA's gold medal-winning performance in the men's 4x400m relay event, where USA won with a season-best timing of 3:03.13 minutes.