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Australian Olympian With No Sponsors Worked At Woolworths To Fund Her Trip To Tokyo

Australian Olympian With No Sponsors Worked At Woolworths To Fund Her Trip To Tokyo

Riley Day saved every cent she made for three years and has now gained a massive following for her hilarious post-race interview.

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie

Australian Olympian Riley Day has racked up a massive online following after her appearance at the Tokyo Olympics.

The sprinter, who competed in the 200m women's event, flew to Japan with no corporate sponsorship, which is something some athletes rely on to help them dedicate themselves to their sport.

She worked at Woolworths for three years and saved every cent so that she could fund the trip to the 2020 Olympics and hoped it will pay off.

Riley Day

It wasn't meant to be for the 21-year-old Queenslander, who didn't progress to the final of her event.

However she did run a personal best of 22.56 seconds and notched the eighth fastest time for an Australian woman in the event.

But she also won over loads of fans thanks to her post-race interview.

While speaking to Channel 7's Bruce McAvaney, she screamed 'holy s**t' into the microphone when discussing her performance.

"That was a much better race than this morning. I've got my groove. Now I hope it's the fastest heat so I can get in the final. Because that is a massive PB. That's awesome," she said.

"I want to be the best and nothing is going to stop me from being the best."

But because she didn't have any sponsors, she hilariously and shamelessly plugged her Instagram account so that everyone watching back home in Australia could support her.

"I mean, if you do want to follow my story, my Instagram is _rileyday, that is where I post most of my stuff," she said. "So, if you want to follow along, that is where it is."

She managed to triple her following in just two days. Before the interview she sat at 21,000 followers and now it's up to nearly 70,000.

Seven's Jason Richardson made sure to point how how Riley didn't have any corporate sponsorship in the hope an Aussie company or business would support her.

He said: "I'm going to embarrass you, we want Australia to start supporting you. You're working at Woolies in the produce section. I know you do the shopping for John who's 90 and he can't see, and you do that every week. You've got a big heart, you don't have a sponsor.

"C'mon Australia, get behind this young lady!"

Hopefully Ms Day gets the attention she deserves and will be able to compete at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

Woolies was particularly proud of seeing their young gun take on the world at this year's Games.

Prior to the race, Woolworths shared a post on LinkedIn said it was 'proud to see one of our team members represent Australia on the world stage'.

"Riley is an adored team member of our Beaudesert store in regional Queensland and is known for going the extra mile for our customers," the post read.

"When the ambitious 21-year-old, nicknamed the 'Beaudesert Bullet' is not replenishing stock or helping our customers, she's working tirelessly on the track, training for at least three hours a day, six days a week. Good luck Riley, we can't wait to see you on the track!"

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Australia