GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.— Incoming Colorado Mesa University swimming recruit Harry Stacey will compete for Ghana at the Paris 2024 Olympics, it has been recently been announced.
 
Stacey, 24, was named as one of the West African nation's two entries in the sport of swimming via World Aquatics' Universality procedures and will compete in the 100-meter freestyle after claiming the bronze medal in that event at the 2024 Africa Aquatic Championships in Luanda, Angola earlier this year.
 
He posted a time of 50.67 seconds in that meet, which ranked him first amongst Ghanaian men on the World Aquatics Points Tables, thus allowing him to earn the Olympic spot along with Joselle Mensah, who will compete in the women's 50-meter freestyle event.
 
"It was joy," Stacey said about his emotions when learning the news of his qualification. 
 
"I finally managed to achieve my life-long dream and reach the pinnacle of my sport, which is an honor.  I'm also grateful to all of the people who have helped me along the way to get to this position.  I couldn't have done it without them, so am grateful to all the investment that they have put into me has come to fruition.
 
A dual-citizen of Ghana and the United Kingdom, Stacey is currently in Brighton, England staying with family members after living, training and competing in Accra, Ghana, the nation's capital, for the past three years.  He was also a 2-event finalist and 50-meter freestyle silver medalist in the Scottish Short Course Championships in December, 2023 after previously living in Scotland (2017-18).
 
"Harry's life story almost seems like good fiction," CMU Head Coach Mickey Wender said.
 
"He has had an amazing series of adventures which led him to Paris to compete this summer.  We are incredibly excited to welcome him to CMU after the Olympics as he begins his next big adventure here at Colorado Mesa,"
 
Wender coached for American Samoa at the 2008 Olympics In Beijing, China.
 
At CMU, Stacey will join an already impressive collegiate program that has won the last six Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference titles while taking fifth at the last two NCAA Division II National Championships.
 
"It was a combination of things," Stacey said about his decision to become a Maverick.  "It's an already extremely decorated D2 program.  I want to win!  Straight up, I want to win and want to be able to contribute to a really good team. 
 
Academically, he will major in computer and electrical engineering as part of CMU's partnership program with CU-Boulder, which was also a big part of his attraction to and decision to come to CMU this fall.
 
"Finally, the coaching staff.  In talking with coach Mickey (Wender) and (CMU Assistant Coach) Andy Parro, I was pleased with their mentality towards swimming.  I was getting good vibes from them and that they are going to be very communicative.  I haven't had that with a lot of my previous coaches and am looking forward to being on the same page on a lot of things.  The friendliness and the communication is the thing that drew me."
 
The Olympic Games will officially commence with the opening ceremonies on the Seine River in the heart of the French capital city on Friday, July 26.  Swimming competition begins the following day with Stacey's 100-meter freestyle preliminary heat scheduled during the 11 a.m. local time (3 a.m. Mountain) swimming session on Tuesday, July 30.
 
Should he advance, the semifinals will be contested later that evening with the final slated for the evening of Wednesday, July 31.
 
Live streaming coverage of every Olympic event can be found in the United States on Peacock alongside other various live and tape-delayed linear television options through the networks of NBC.
 
Stacey will be the Mavericks' first Olympian in the sport of swimming and will be one of three current or incoming CMU student-athletes to compete in Paris this summer.
 
Cyclist Olvia Cummins will compete for Team USA in the Track Cycling Team Pursuit event on Aug. 7 while incoming CMU freshman Emma Meyers will compete for the United States in the sport of Paratriathlon during the Paralympic Games on Sept. 1.