Allyson Felix had been little more than a blink of the eye from gold in the Olympics before. In Athens, Felix, thought to be the American heir to Marion Jones, finished .13 seconds behind Veronica Campbell-Brown in the final of women's 200 meters for silver. In Beijing, she was .19 back of Campbell-Brown, good for silver again. On Thursday, Felix finally broke through for gold, winning the 200m and putting Campbell-Brown in Felix's past.
Felix was the only woman to break 22 seconds in the race, running it in 21.88 seconds to beat silver medalist Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce of Jamaica (22.09) and bronze medalist Carmelita Jeter of the U.S. (22.14), who each added to medals earned in the 100 meters.
After the race, she was understandably relieved:
"I mean, finally," she said after the race. "It’s been a long time coming. I am so overjoyed."
Campbell-Brown finished fourth in the event, at 22.38 seconds, missing a medal in her attempt to go from being the only woman with two golds in the event to being the first woman with three golds in the event. American Sanya Richards-Ross finished fifth.
Felix, the first woman with three medals in the 200m, could match Campbell-Brown's repeat feat in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, should she choose to continue her sprinting career.
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