COLUMBIA South Carolina — American and world sprint icon Allyson Felix made an impressive start to the final season of her career with a 22.40 seconds (1.8m/s) victory in the women’s 200 meters at the 2022 USC Outdoor Open on Saturday, 23 April.
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Felix, who is coming off a quality 4x400m relay leg at the Mt. Sac Relays last weekend, returned this week to speed home at the University of South Carolina meeting in Columbia, with the seventh-fastest time in the world this season.
Collegiate star Melissa Jefferson of Coastal Carolina, the 2022 NCAA Indoor Championships 60m gold champion, finished second to Felix with a time of 22.46 secs to improve her personal best significantly.
It is only the third time Jefferson is dipping under-23 seconds in her career as she continues to show massive progress in what’s rapidly becoming a complete season for the sprinter star who set a Coastal Carolina and Sun Belt Conference record for the 200m.
Felix Saying Goodbye
Meanwhile, Felix, the most decorated Olympian in track and field history, announced earlier this month that this year will be her final season on the track.
The 5-time Olympian, who has won seven Olympic Games gold medals, and has collected 11 medals in total, is also a 14-time World Championships champion —including one indoor gold medal.
She’s looking forward to closing out her career in 2022 and will use the remaining time to thank all the people who have contributed to her success.
“I want to say goodbye and thank you to the sport and people who have helped shape me the only way I know how – with one last run,” Felix said in her Instagram post.
“This season I’m running for women. I’m running for a better future for my daughter. I’m running for you,” the American great added.
