Ayana Johnson hands off the baton to D'Nia Freeman in the Penn Relays Championship of America 4x100m relay. Four days later, Freeman would be called upon to represent her native Bahamas at the IAAF World Relays.
Thousands of spectators filled Thomas Robinson Stadium through two days of competition at the IAAF World Relays in Nassau, Bahamas this past weekend.
But for D'Nia Freeman, the fan who mattered most was not there.
The Riverdale Baptist (MD) junior is a native of the island country. Her mother is a native Bahamian and her father is American. The family moved to Maryland in 2010, but with the request from Freeman's track coach, Freddy Bastian, that she one day return to represent the Bahamas on the track.
Bastian, long-time head coach of the Kenyan Knights Track Club, passed away in February of stomach cancer.
"It really did hit me hard. My friend told me that he passed away and I didn't believe it because how could someone you loved so much and cared for, go so soon?" she said. "He was so excited to see the way I was going with my track career. We were really close."
Freeman grew up with the sport and thus, with Bastian, competing as a 100-meter and 200-meter specialist beginning in the second grade for the Kenyan Knights TC. But it is the 400 meters where Freeman has found her greatest success - she won the USATF National Youth Indoor Track and Field Championship last March.
"He was someone who opened my eyes to the 400 and gave me technique to the 400 and how to run it," she said.
When Bastian passed away, Freeman and her parents made the decision to pursue qualifying in the event for the CARIFTA Games, an annual athletics competition amongst Caribbean countries. She flew to the Bahamas to try out for the junior national team just one week after tripling at New Balance Nationals Indoor in the Championship 400m (57.16), Emerging Elite 200m (25.20) and Championship 4x200-meter relay (10th, 1:40.19).
Freeman made the cut for the Under 18 400m as well as the 4x400m. One week back in Upper Marlboro, Maryland was followed by a training trip to bond with her new relay teammates and then St. Kitts and Nevis for CARIFTA.
She advanced to the finals of the Girls Under 18 400m, where she placed fifth in 55.78. The Bahamas 4x400-meter relay team placed runners-up to Jamaica, 3:40.58 to 3:39.13.
That was supposed to be the end of Freeman's jet-setting. An outstanding run at The Penn Relays Carnival saw the Freeman and her Riverdale Baptist squad make the Championship of America 4x100, where they placed sixth overall as the second American team.
But the whirlwind was not over for Freeman just yet. She arrived back in Waldorf, Maryland on Tuesday, April 28 and received word that she was selected for the Bahamian senior national team's 4x400-meter relay in the IAAF World Relays.
"I always told my parents that I had wanted to go back and watch," she said. "I had no intentions to go back and run. My cousin told me and I was just, like, in shock at first."
Just two days later, Freeman was on another plane to the islands - this time, back to her native country. It was one thing to compete in the CARIFTA Games as an age group representative of her country. But the IAAF World Relays are a senior level competition featuring the best athletes in the world.
"At CARIFTA Games, I was the second oldest person [on the relay]," she said. "I was older and more mature. Here, I ran against people older, more experienced, have been on this big stage before and [who] went about the meet a lot differently. They had a lot of good pointers and good tips and going about the meet not being nervous and having fun with it."
She stayed in a hotel room next to Usain Bolt (pictured to the right), World Record Holder in the 100 meter (9.58) and 200 meter (19.19) dashes, and had dinner with Allyson Felix, a six-time Olympic medalist.
Amidst the hubbub and celebrity sightings, the memory of Coach Bastian remained close in mind.
"I pictured him in the stands screaming for me and cheering me on," Freeman said.
Freeman ran in the consolation final for the Bahamas, where they placed third in 3:35.01. She split 55.24 on the third leg. Cuba won in 3:30.94.
"I'm pretty happy about it, of course, there's always things you can improve," she said. "They understood that we had a very, very young group compared to previous times and they were really excited about us as a team being so young that they really were impressed with the time that we ran."
Life is fleeting, as is success on the track at times. Whether or not more international teams are in her future, Freeman knows to take advantage of her fitness while it's with her and strike while the iron is hot.
"It really shook me a lot and made me realize that time is short and you've gotta live every day to the fullest," she said.
Photo Gallery: D'Nia Freeman with Usain Bolt | D'Nia Freeman with Carmelita Jeter | D'Nia Freeman with Allyson Felix | D'Nia Freeman with Kaylin Whitney