If you know anything about women in sports, you know Allyson Felix is not the one to play with on a track. The sprinting icon has spent two decades cementing her name in history. Just when we thought she had closed that chapter for good, she is lacing back up her shoes. Read on to learn more about the legendary track star as we revisit her historic career inside.
At 40 years old, Felix is coming out of retirement with her eyes set on the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games. She describes her return as a “live experiment in human potential.” But before we get into that, let us take a moment to properly honor everything this woman has already built.
Felix is a seven-time Olympic gold medalist who holds 11 Olympic medals total, making her the most decorated American track and field athlete in history. She first stepped onto the Olympic stage as an 18-year-old at the 2004 Athens Games, becoming the youngest Olympic medalist in an individual track race in 24 years when she took silver in the 200 meters. That was just the beginning.
According to Today, Over five Olympic appearances spanning Athens, Beijing, London, Rio and Tokyo, Felix stacked gold, silver and bronze across both individual events and relays. Her final Olympic medal count landed at 11, broken down as seven golds, three silvers and one bronze. On the World Championships stage, she added a staggering 20 medals and 14 gold medals at biennial World Outdoor Championships, including 200-meter gold in 2005, 2007 and 2009.
Off the track, Felix proved she was just as powerful. After a very public dispute with Nike over her maternity contract, she co-founded her own women’s footwear and apparel company called Saysh. She became a voice for maternal rights in sports, an IOC member and a member of the LA28 Organizing Committee Athletes’ Commission. She has already been winning at life in every direction.
So why come back? According to Time, Felix has called her attempt “Project Six,” representing a potential sixth Olympic Games appearance, and described the pursuit as “A Love Story With Los Angeles,” given that she is a native of the city. She has never had the chance to compete in front of a hometown crowd, and that unfinished business is pulling her back. Felix told Time, “So many of us have been told not to do the big, bold thing. And just, why not? Let’s flip it on its head. Let’s go after the thing.”
As reported by AP News, Felix and her coach, Bobby Kersee, plan to begin a comprehensive training program in October, with the goal of returning to competition in 2027 and qualifying for the Olympic trials. She will be 42 by the time the 2028 Games begin, and she is going in with full clarity about what that means.
“I know, at 40, I am not at my peak,” she said. “I have no illusions about that.”
And honestly? That kind of self-awareness paired with that kind of audacity is exactly what makes Allyson Felix the legend she has always been.
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