NEWS - Qatar Olympic Committee

o o o o o o o o o
STAR
IN QATAR
Allyson Felix poses
in front of Beijing’s
Bird’s Nest Stadium
before last year’s
Olympic Games
“I WANT TO WIN AT LEAST ONE
INDIVIDUAL GOLD MEDAL
IN THE OLYMPICS BEFORE I
LEAVE THE SPORT”
Qatar Sports Club’s 100m track with a meeting record
time of 10.93 seconds, breaking the 11 seconds barrier for
the first time in her career. After pocketing the 100m gold,
Felix returned to the track 80 minutes later to make it a
double winning the 400m race in 49.83 seconds. “I always
like going to Qatar,” she tells Qatar Sport. “I really like the
stadium and I was really pleased with how I opened my
season there last year.”
Such a win on a warm night in Doha gave her renewed
confidence for the season, which climaxed at the Beijing
Olympics in August, where many predicted that Felix
would claim the 200m crown. By her own high standards,
however, a gold medal in the 400m relay in Beijing failed
to compensate for silver in the individual 200m.
Felix weighs up the pros and of her Olympic experience
in typically balanced style. “I think overall my performance
was decent, but I don’t feel like I accomplished my goals
although I still enjoyed the overall experience,” she says.
“Winning as a team and as an individual is just a
different feeling. In a relay, it’s a team effort, we work
together and it’s great to be out there and have people to
celebrate with.
“In an individual event, you work all year round to win
an individual title so it feels really wonderful to win and
know you’ve accomplished your goal. They are both really
gratifying in their own way. “
All in all, the American track and field team left Beijing
with a worse-than-expected seven gold medals, but Felix is
far from downhearted. “I think that we are really strong
and have great depth,” she says.
“Everyone is motivated and even though we did not
have the showing that was expected of us last year I believe
that our depth will continue to grow.” Of course, Felix and
the US team have another opportunity to shine at the
major track and field event of the year, the Berlin IAAF
World Championships in August.
Next year will also be a special one because she is set to
take part in the inaugural season of the IAAF Diamond
League, which, at the time of writing, was awaiting Doha’s
confirmation among the host cities.
The Diamond League aims to bring top-class athletics
to new audiences and Felix is confident that the new
format will be “exciting for the sport and the fans”.
But looming over the horizon is the one that got away
- Olympic individual gold. “I want to win at least one
individual gold medal in the Olympics before I leave the
sport and hopefully I will have left the sport with a
successful career,” she says of her long-term ambitions.
And when her glory days on the track are over, she’ll
start her teaching career in earnest. Felix has plenty to offer
today’s restless youth: patience, self-discipline and a strong
will to win - without breaking the rules. So what advice
would she give to young, female athletes looking to make
a career in sport? “I would tell them to get their priorities
in order and to make a plan for what they want to do - and
no matter what, always make sure to have fun.”
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