As Olympic rosters are extremely limited, Kiernan worked out a deal to help both the USA and Jamaican teams. One particular night, he was supporting Team Jamaica and ran down from the track after the event to change into USA gear.
Kiernan had worked multiple World Championships before. He was invited to the 2022 Beijing Olympics at the last minute after multiple technicians got Covid, but he couldn’t go because it was the first week of the fire academy.
When he got there four years later, the stage quickly shocked him.
“I was desensitized until I got there and was like, ‘Oh no, this is the Olympics,’” Kiernan joked. “Seeing them set up the cauldron for the flame in the opening ceremonies was bigger than I anticipated.”
Back in Syracuse, Castor said members of the fire department would send screenshots of the events to each other when they saw Kiernan in the background on TV. The crew felt excitement when seeing a coworker represent them on the biggest stage, Castor said.