Tokyo 2021-Athletics: Allyson Felix equals Carl Lewis with tenth Olympic medal
American sprinter Allyson Felix, bronze medalist at the Tokyo Olympics over 400m on August 6, 2021. REUTERS - PHIL NOBLE
Text by: Nicolas Bamba Follow
4 min
Allyson Felix, 35, placed third in Friday's 400m final in Shaunae Miller-Uibo and Marileidi Paulino.
With this bronze medal, the American becomes the most successful female athlete in the history of the Games in athletics.
She also joins Carl Lewis and his 10 charms.
Publicity
Read more
In 2004, in Athens, a young woman of only 18 years old appeared in the eyes of the world during the Olympic Games.
In the 200m, Allyson Felix took the silver medal and broke the junior world record for the distance.
Seventeen years later, the American is still present in Tokyo for her fifth Games.
And she hasn't lost her appetite for medals.
5x Olympian and 10x Olympic medalist.
@allysonfelix matches Carl Lewis' record for the most medals in US Olympic track and field history.
#TokyoOlympics pic.twitter.com/prBfcmWMNV
- Team USA (@TeamUSA) August 6, 2021
Merlene Ottey overwhelmed, admiring Carl Lewis
At 35, and after maternity in 2018, the sprinter still has her say on the slopes.
This Friday August 6, Allyson Felix did not start favorite for the 400m final.
The silver medalist on the lap at the 2016 Games left this status to the Bahamian Shaunae Miller-Uibo, crowned in Rio.
The logic has been respected.
Felix, part of lane n ° 9, could not fight for the gold medal so much Miller-Uibo dominated the head and shoulders this final.
But behind the now double Olympic champion (48''36, North American, Central American and Caribbean record equaled), there was a fight for the podium. Puerto Rican Marileidy Paulino pulled out to take the silver medal (49''20). And finally, Allyson Felix completed the podium with a time of 49.46, his best of the season. Jamaican Stephenie Ann McPherson could not catch up with him (49''61).
This is Allyson Felix's first bronze medal in five Olympics. But it allows him to enter the legend of athletics at the Olympics. The accounts are crazy: the American now has 10 Olympic medals. She is ahead of the Slovenian (ex-Jamaican) Merlene Ottey and her 9 Olympic medals (3 in silver, 6 in bronze) and equaled a certain Carl Lewis. His compatriot also won 10 medals, certainly more prestigious (9 in gold, one in silver) and gleaned in four editions of the Olympic Games (1984, 1988, 1992 and 1996). This does not prevent her from welcoming the great performance of her younger sister: “
What an incredible career and inspiration. And now, the relay.
"
Congratulations @allysonfelix.
35 never looked so good.
What an amazing career and inspiration.
Now on to the relay.
- Carl Lewis (@Carl_Lewis) August 6, 2021
Allyson Felix, who is probably playing his final Olympics here in Japan, could actually do even better on Saturday.
The American women's relay qualifies for the 4x400 final.
What if Felix took off for a historic eleventh medal?
THE OLYMPIC WINNERS OF ALLYSON FELIX
2004 Olympics (Athens): 200m silver
2008 Olympic Games (Beijing): gold over 4x400m, silver over 200m
Olympic Games 2012 (London): gold over 4x400m, gold over 4x100m, gold over 200m
2016 Olympic Games (Rio de Janeiro): gold over 4x400m, gold over 4x100m, silver over 200m
Jo 2021 (Tokyo): bronze over 400m
Newsletter
Receive all international news directly in your mailbox
I subscribe
Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application
google-play-badge_FR
Olympic Games
2020 Olympics
United States
Athletics
On the same subject
Tokyo 2021-Athletics: Ugandan Joshua Cheptegei crowned Olympic champion in the 5000m
Reportage
Tokyo 2021: Giana Lotfy Farouk, bronze in karate for fame