“Me wanting to be a better Melissa” – Melissa Jefferson-Wooden breaks down her journey toward a breakthrough season with support from her coach

American sprinter Melissa Jefferson-Wooden shed light on her mindset towards her breakthrough 2025 season. This comes just a few weeks before the US Outdoor Championships, the qualifying event for Jefferson-Wooden to the Worlds.

Notably, Jefferson-Wooden failed to qualify for the World Championships a couple of years back, where she finished fifth in the 100m event of the trials. However, with immense momentum and Olympic experience at her back, she is looking to enter this Championships season with a different mindset.

The 2024 Olympics bronze medalist said that she is approaching the season with a different mindset and explained how her coach's anecdote helped her to learn in the practice sessions. She said (via USATF):

"I feel like going into the season, I definitely had a shift in mindset, just the way I approach things, whether it is me getting up and eating breakfast and going straight practice, or me being more attentive in practice and asking more questions and getting information from my coach and using him as a resource. The inspiration to make that change came strictly due to me wanting to be a better Melissa."

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden has had an impressive season so far this year. The South Carolina native hasn't lost a single 100m race she has been a part of, and was also the short sprints division winner at Michael Johnson's debut Grand Slam Track league. Next up, she will be in action in the 100m race of the 2025 Prefontaine Classic.

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden on her thought process for the 2025 Prefontaine Classic

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden (Image via: Getty)

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden opened up about her plans for the 2025 Prefontaine Classic. Notably, the 2024 Olympics bronze medalist was also part of the competition last year, where she finished fifth in the 100m race.

Jefferson-Wooden shared that she is not looking to visualize it as a bigger race and just wants to execute her plans with perfection. Additionally, the 24-year-old also mentioned that she is working on the small details, as these are the skillsets that matter in big races. She said (via Citius Mag, 00:24 onwards):

"I am not trying to make it a big race or bigger than what it is. It's an exciting race, I will say that, but for me personally, I'm just doing the same thing I have been doing, focusing on my execution. We're all fast but when it comes to the big races, it's going to come down to the little things, so, we've been focusing on the little things."

During the conversation, Melissa Jefferson-Wooden also remarked that she is excited to compete against the likes of Sha'Carri Richardson and Julien Alfred in a 2024 Paris Olympics finals rematch.