When Francois Prinsloo competes in the discus in the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris next month, it will be the culmination of a vision he and South Alabama coach Paul Brueske agreed upon when they first met more than a half-decade ago.

In his five years in Mobile, the 22-year-old Prinsloo —born in Kenya but raised in South Africa —has developed into one of the best in the world in his event. He won a national championship at the NCAA outdoor track & field meet last month in Eugene, Ore., after having surpassed the Olympic-qualifying standard in his event at a regular-season meet in April.

“One of the things I always talk about in the recruiting process is, we have everything that you need to succeed at the highest level, at the NCAA level and beyond,” Brueske said. “And Francois is proof of that.”

Prinsloo came to South Alabama after twice claiming his national championship in South Africa while still in high school and winning gold as a 17-year-old at the 2018 African Games. He joined a Jaguars program with a long history of recruiting athletes from his country, including 2023 pole vault national champion Kyle Rademeyer.

So it wasn’t as if Brueske had to give him a hard sell on South Alabama. He said the necessary resources were in place in Mobile for him to reach his dreams.

“The coaches here, they’ve always have an athlete-first perspective,” Prinsloo said. “They’re great about making sure that we get our needs taken care of. It may not be fancy, but it’s exactly what it is that we need. I’m very much an example of that. We have what we need to be an Olympic athlete right here at South.”

Prinsloo arrived in Mobile just before the COVID pandemic wiped out most of his freshman season, but was a first-team All-American as a sophomore in 2021 and a first-team All-Sun Belt Conference selection the following year while also competing in the hammer throw.

It was during this past spring that Prinsloo blossomed into one of the best discus throwers in recent NCAA history. He surpassed the Olympic qualifying standard with a throw of 67.20 meters (214 feet, 6 inches) at the Southern Miss Invitational on April 27, then was named Sun Belt Conference Outdoor Field Athlete of the Year after winning gold in the discus for the third straight year (he also won the hammer throw) at the league meet in Monroe, La., in late May.

Then on June 7, he won the national title with a throw of 63.51 meters (208 feet, 4 inches), nearly two meters (and five-plus feet) better than runner-up Roquil Broderick of USC (61.77/202-8).The NCAA championship capped a whirlwind spring for Prinsloo, who also graduated from South Alabama with a degree in biology and got engaged to long-time girlfriend (and fellow USA alum) Aunell Davenport.

“My life has been absolutely incredible these last few months,” Prinsloo said. “I’ve had obviously a lot of attention being put on me, I’ve had really good training going on. My country’s also been supporting me; my family back home are extremely ecstatic. I’ve gotten engaged right after nationals. So my life has been absolutely fantastic. … I’ve just been blessed over these last few months and I really can’t put it into words.”

Olympic opening ceremonies are set for July 26 in Paris, with competition running through Aug. 11. The men’s discus competition is scheduled to begin on Aug. 3, with the finals taking place on Aug. 7.

The Olympic competition in the discus will be especially stiff for Prinsloo. Mykolas Alekna of Lithuania broke the world record — which had stood for 38 years —with a throw of 74.35 meters at an invitational event in Tulsa, Okla., in April, while reigning world and Olympic champion Daniel Stahl of Sweden, 2021 Olympic bronze medalist Lukas Weisshaidinger of Austria and 2022 world champion (and 2023 world runner-up) Kristjan Ceh of Slovenia are also among those lined up to compete in Paris.

“The goal is to do my absolute best,” Prinsloo said. “Obviously, there are people that are high class. These are people who are considered legends and some of the best that we’ve ever seen in this (sport). I’m so excited to learn from them. This is a great learning experience for me, as well as to compete against them.

“At the end of the day, it’s not about winning, it’s not about losing. If I go out there, I give my best and I (finish) last, but I gave my best, I did everything to the highest degree that I possibly could, that’s all that matters. There’s nothing more than you can do than give your all on the world’s biggest stage. And that’s exactly what I’m gonna do.”

Prinsloo is among two 2024 Olympians with Mobile ties, along with swimmer Paige Madden. A former NCAA champion at the University of Virginia and a UMS-Wright graduate, the 25-year-old Madden will be competing in her second Olympics after winning a silver medal as part of the United States’ 4×200-meter relay team in Tokyo in 2021.

Even if Prinsloo is unable to win a medal in Paris, it probably won’t be his last chance to shine on the world stage. At just 22, he’s likely got many more years of international competition in his future.

“You always hope someone can develop into an Olympic-level athlete, but it’s such a rare thing,” Brueske said. “It’s great for our program and great for our university and obviously we’re very excited for Francois. It’s such a great opportunity for him. And he’s young. I think he could have a long career and, hopefully, make it to several Olympics.”