DALLAS, Texas (AFP) –
A double gold bid could be on the cards for Allyson Felix, pictured here in April 2012, at the London Games, but the three-time 200m world champion just isn’t sure which one. Felix produced a stunning upset in the women’s 100m at the Diamond League meeting in Doha on Friday, clocking 10.92sec to beat home Jamaican rivals Veronica Campbell-Brown and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce.
A double gold bid could be on the cards for Allyson Felix at the London Games, but the three-time 200m world champion just isn’t sure which one.
Felix produced a stunning upset in the women’s 100m at the Diamond League meeting in Doha on Friday, clocking 10.92sec to beat home Jamaican rivals Veronica Campbell-Brown and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce.
The American then hopped on a plane for Dallas, arriving in time for the US Olympic Committee’s media summit, a three-day event where more than 100 Olympic contenders and hopefuls met the press to discuss their London ambitions.
Felix, who attempted a 200m-400m double at the World Championships in Daegu, South Korea, last season, said she didn’t yet know if she’d try for two individual events in London.
If she does, however, it could be in the 100m and 200m.
“It’s definitely one of my possibles,” she said of a potential 100-200 bid.
“Since my last race people actually believe me,” she added.
Whatever she and coach Bobby Kersee decide, she said she doesn’t want to do anything to jeopardize her 200m bid.
“I like to call the 200 my baby,” Felix said. “It’s my favorite event.
“I’ve had almost four years to think about being the silver medallist,” Felix added with an unhappy stress on the “silver”.
In Beijing four years ago, Campbell-Brown clocked a personal best to finish ahead of Felix — who also earned silver behind the Jamaican at Athens four years earlier.
“That (the 200m) is my main focus. But I am comfortable with running another event.”
In Daegu, Felix settled for silver in the 400m and then bronze in the 200m. As in plotting her Daegu campaign, Felix said the difficulty is that the 200m would follow either the 400m or 100m, perhaps proving too tiring to leave her at her best for her pet event.
But she said her experience in South Korea had taught her a lot about how to approach a double.
“Getting to go through rounds was a very valuable experience for me,” she said. “I do feel confident I could run two events.”
Before that can happen, Felix must get through the demanding US athletics trials, which will be held in Eugene, Oregon, in June.
She said her performance in Doha was a signal that her season is shaping up well.
“I was definitely excited to start my season off that way,” she said. “I’m going in the right direction. Of course it’s going to be a long season … I feel like things are on schedule now.”
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