Early in her career, there was little to suggest that Nia Akins would eventually become America’s top hope for an Olympic gold medal in the 800-meter run.

And yet, even as the NBC TV announcers were bemoaning the fall of heavy favorite and 2021 Olympic champion Athing Mu, there was the 25-year-old Akins roaring into the lead en route to capturing the 800 at the U.S. Olympic Trials in Eugene, Ore., last weekend.

“I knew something happened, I felt the shift in the pack behind me,” said Akins, who was running comfortably in second place when Mu, like Akins three years earlier, tripped and fell to the track. “In the prelims and semifinals, I looked at the scoreboard to see where I was, but in the finals, I never looked, so I didn’t know what happened.”

Akins’ winning time of 1 minute, 57.36 seconds is No. 4 in the world this year, behind the 1:55.78 by Great Britain’s Keely Hodgkinson, who is heading to this summer’s Paris Olympics.

Hodgkinson ran her time in the Prefontaine Classic, where Akins — competing in her first outdoor meet of the season — finished fourth in 1:57.98.

Akins was barely a blip on the radar of United States middle-distance runners while attending Rancho Bernardo High School.

Her best time of 2:08.91 came as a junior in 2015, where she placed sixth in the state.

Akins moved on to the University of Pennsylvania, where she ran track and majored in nursing. She didn’t make her mark on the track until her junior and senior seasons, when she placed second in the NCAA indoor and outdoor meets.

“She was told not to expect much because no one who majored in the tough nursing school had been able to balance that with track,” said her high school coach, Terry Dockery.

Akins still hadn’t broken the 2-minute barrier — and wouldn’t until she moved to Seattle to train with Danny Mackey and Julian Flores of the Brooks Beasts Track Club.

Finally, in 2022 at the Running Sound meet at JSerra High School in San Juan Capistrano, she dipped under 2:00 at 1:58.82, starting a stunningly fast move into international significance, which included winning the U.S. National Championship in 2023 at 1:59.50, qualifying for the World Championships in Hungary, where she placed seventh in 1:57.73.

Still, it wasn’t good enough to get more than a casual mention from NBC prior to the Trials finals.

But, as she did in the semifinals, Akins caught everyone’s attention when she made a strong move with 180 meters remaining, building an uncatchable lead while cruising to a personal best time and the coveted Olympic berth.

“It still hasn’t hit me,” said Akins. “I was just excited to race going into the Trials and I really had no strategy — I just wanted one of the top three spots to qualify. With 200 meters remaining, I decided to go for it. My thought was, ‘if it happens, it happens.’

“At that point I had tunnel vision, and I didn’t look up at the scoreboard. In truth, you never know what might happen, so I prepared myself to fight off anyone who came up to challenge me. I had already controlled as much as I could control.

“During the race, I kept thinking I only had to go hard for another two minutes…three years of preparation had come down to two minutes. I had to thank God for preparing me for it and when I finished, I looked at scoreboard and thought ‘we did it.’”

She won by almost a full second over Allie Wilson (1:58.32).

Akins said she knew what to expect on everything, from being interviewed post-race to being completely outfitted with Team USA  apparel, choosing a blue uniform. She received similar treatment the year before after qualifying for the World Championships

.“The support staff is first-rate,” said Akins, noting that she’ll have three pairs of Brooks Hyperion MD spikes, which require no breaking in. “The rings they give us are very special — we get whatever we need. They even gave us PJs.”

But first, Akins — who proudly calls herself one of the Beasts after her track club’s name — will head off to Albuquerque, N.M.  for some high-altitude training at 5,300 feet. She said the experience she gained with the World team and at the Trials prepared her well.

“I’ve been very fortunate to have great coaches my whole career,” said Akins, who turns 26 on Sunday.

She’s looking to medal in Paris. Dockery, for one, won’t be surprised if it happens.

“I’ll be disappointed if she doesn’t medal, but the 800 is a very unforgiving event, it’s scary,” he said. “She’s laser-focused, something I noticed when she was at RB. I wished she’d have more fun, and now it seems like she is having fun.

“When she runs, she kind of glides, despite having good speed. She never gets the full credit, but she’s as good as anyone in the world.”