Allyson Felix finally seized the moment, Gold.
Under a rare clear London sky, Allyson Felix shot around the track in the 200-meter race like a woman determined to not have a third failure in the event of her life.
With 40 meters remaining to cover before the finish line – and the elusive Olympic gold medal – Felix burst pass Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce to glory.
The disheartening results of previous Olympics mattered not. The gold was hers, and she left no doubt about it, either, winning by .21 seconds.
Felix won the race in 21.88 seconds, topping Fraser-Pryce of Jamaica, who won the 100 four nights earlier and Team USA’s Carmelita Jeter, who added a bronze to go with her silver in the 100 meters.
One more spot back was Jamaica’s Veronica Campbell-Brown, who defeated Felix in the Athens and Beijing Games and was trying to become the first woman to win the same individual track and field event in three consecutive Olympics. The back to back Olympic defeat served as motivation for Felix,
“I think it was all for a reason. It kept me motivated and it made this moment very special. It was a big weight being lifted.”
But the memory of her heartbreak four years ago isn’t far away,
“It’s crazy,” she said. “I remember just coming over here in tears in Beijing. Gosh, just completely opposite tonight. For all of it to come together is just extremely special and I’m overjoyed.”
