The roar of the crowd at the Hayward Field would have given waves of goosebumps to everyone in attendance – and perhaps even to those watching on some screen or the other in different parts of the world. If you listened carefully, it was not the usual cheer, one that encourages an athlete. You could hear unabashed adoration and boundless respect.
For this was Allyson Felix, tracked by thousands of pairs of eyes, willed by countless hearts. Each one aware that this was her final race on the global stage, which she strode with grace and dignity as she went about collecting seven gold medals in the Olympic Games and 13 in the World Athletics Championships.
On Friday, she ran the second leg of the 4×400 Mixed Relay for the United States of America. The home crowd was expectedly rooting for her team. But its tone struck a different pitch for 50 seconds from the time she received the baton from Elija Goodwin to when she handed it over to Vernon Norwood.
The 36-year-old fought gamely to hold on to the lead that Goodwin opened up over the challengers Dominican Republic. But Marileidy Paulino, who became the first Dominican athlete to win more than one medal in an Olympic Games last year, came up with a scintillating effort to pinch the lead.
Tired after that run, Allyson Felix would have sensed that her team was back in the lead through Norwood and her hopes of a farewell gold would have risen when Kennedy Simon set off with a 1.69-second advantage over Dominican Republic’s anchor Fiordaliza Cofil, a little known 21-year-old. Those hopes fell alarmingly over the last 100m when Kennedy Simon lost pace.
The champion that she is, Allyson Felix walked up to a shell-shocked team-mate who plonked herself on the track, overtaken by disbelief that she was not only unable to clinch gold but also lost the silver to the Netherlands. The most decorated of athletes put a comforting arm around the younger athlete and whispered words of encouragement.
Much as every single fan of hers would have willed it that she ended her international career with a gold, Allyson Felix herself was happy that he could make another trip to the podium. And she has had 28 of those before in the Olympic Games and the World Championships since 2004. It was a bronze in Tokyo2020 and it was a bronze in Oregon22 as well.
Typically, farewells tend to overshadow the event itself but Allyson Felix ensured that it was about the team and not her. There was no farewell lap on the Hayward Field track, there was no attempt to steal anyone else’s thunder. Instead, there was a calm and maturity, not to speak of a quiet departure with her team-mates.
“It was very special to be able to run in front of a home crowd for my last race. It was so cool. My daughter was in the stands. It was a night I will cherish. I’ve had such good memories. I know it is time and these guys will carry it on into the future. I am at peace stepping into this next stage and have tremendous gratitude for this sport,” she said.
She was dignity personified as she exited the stage that she had owned so admirably. There could have been many emotions bobbing up in her heart and mind – relief that it is all done, anxiety about what to do next, joy at the collection of medals – but she chose to express gratitude. This quality makes her such a popular athlete and fine ambassador for her sport.
She has also leant her voice to critical issues and has been heard with attention. Having had to take a cut in sponsorships when she was expecting her daughter Camryn, she has advocated equality and protection of track and field athletes who become pregnant. Changes have already been made, with free childcare for athletes at most events.
Indeed, Allyson Felix not only has a record that will take some beating but also a legacy that will stay for a long time. Just as the adoring, respectful roar of the audience at the Hayward Field on Friday night will stay embedded in the minds of those willing her to leave with another gold medal around her neck.
