Pain of defeat drove me on, says Felix
Source: Agencies |
August 10, 2012, Friday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
THREE-TIME 200m world champion Allyson Felix ended her long wait for Olympic gold on Wednesday, saying the pain of double defeat on the biggest stage had given her the motivation to succeed.
Felix, twice a silver medallist, at the 2004 and 2008 Games, dominated a stellar field in London to power to victory in 21.88sec, ending the reign of her nemesis Veronica Campbell-Brown of Jamaica.
The 26-year-old looked smooth throughout the race, coming off the bend with a significant lead and holding her nerve in the home stretch to win a long-overdue first Olympic gold. She said despite her many successes on the world stage, the lack of an Olympic title drove her on.
"There were a lot of ups and downs. I definitely had good moments but I think the moments that motivated me most were losing on the biggest stage and just never forgetting that feeling," she said.
"I embrace that journey. I embrace the defeats because that's what has pushed me all these years," she added.
Felix said losing twice at the Olympics to Campbell-Brown, who came fourth in London, had been tough but the competition had driven her on.
"When we get in the races together we push each other and tonight was no different. She's a fighter and I knew that she would step up. I knew that everyone in the field would.
"We always talk about the rivalry and all that stuff," Felix said. "What's fresh in my mind is the individual defeat and those emotions and that's the four years from then and the four years before that. It's been a long time coming."
Felix's victory is the United States' first gold in the event since 1992, when Gwen Torrence won in Barcelona - and represents a rare recent success.
Felix, twice a silver medallist, at the 2004 and 2008 Games, dominated a stellar field in London to power to victory in 21.88sec, ending the reign of her nemesis Veronica Campbell-Brown of Jamaica.
The 26-year-old looked smooth throughout the race, coming off the bend with a significant lead and holding her nerve in the home stretch to win a long-overdue first Olympic gold. She said despite her many successes on the world stage, the lack of an Olympic title drove her on.
"There were a lot of ups and downs. I definitely had good moments but I think the moments that motivated me most were losing on the biggest stage and just never forgetting that feeling," she said.
"I embrace that journey. I embrace the defeats because that's what has pushed me all these years," she added.
Felix said losing twice at the Olympics to Campbell-Brown, who came fourth in London, had been tough but the competition had driven her on.
"When we get in the races together we push each other and tonight was no different. She's a fighter and I knew that she would step up. I knew that everyone in the field would.
"We always talk about the rivalry and all that stuff," Felix said. "What's fresh in my mind is the individual defeat and those emotions and that's the four years from then and the four years before that. It's been a long time coming."
Felix's victory is the United States' first gold in the event since 1992, when Gwen Torrence won in Barcelona - and represents a rare recent success.
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