Honoring Women, Timeline of Legend Allyson Felix

By: Ibrahim El-Shawarby

CAIRO, March.9 (SEE)- On occasion of Women's Appreciation Day, SEE would like to commemorate one of the greatest track and field athletes in history, multiple time Olympian Allyson Felix.

Olympic gold medalist and famed female sprinter Allyson Felix was born on November 18, 1985 in Los Angeles, California. Felix was raised by her father, an ordained minister, and her mother, a local elementary school teacher. Her older brother, Wes Felix, is also a sprinter.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="819"] Allyson Felix's Family[/caption]

Athletically gifted from a young age, Felix excelled at basketball as a kid. She earned the nickname "Chicken Legs" for her thin physique. In order to demonstrate her physical strength, the high school freshman went out for the track team. She excelled from the start, within a year finishing seventh in the 200-meter dash at the CIF California State Meet, and eventually becoming a five-time winner.

At just 18 years old, Felix competed in her first Olympics, the 2004 Summer Games in Athens. Competing in the 200-meter race, she finished second, behind Jamaica's Veronica Campbell-Brown, and earned the silver medal. In 2005, she became the youngest champion to compete at the World Championships, and two years later, she became only the second female to win three gold medals at a single World Championships.

At the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, Felix ran a personal best of 21.93 in the 200 meters, but again finished behind Campbell-Brown, taking a second silver medal. She did, however, earn one gold medal that year, with the women's 4-by-400-meter relay team.

At the 2012 Olympic Games in London, Felix won her first inpidual gold medal, beating out Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Carmelita Jeter in the 200-meter, respectively, with a time of 21.88 seconds. Her longtime rival, Veronica Campbell-Brown, finished fourth in the race. Felix went on to compete in the 4-by-100-meter relay, and, along with teammates Carmelita Jeter, Bianca Knight and Tianna Madison, won another gold medal. The relay team also set a new world record, with a time of 40.82 seconds (the previous record was 41.37 seconds, set in 1985 by East Germany. Felix won gold again in the 4-by-400-meter relay with teammates DeeDee Trotter, Francena McCorory, and Sanya Richards-Ross. Their winning time of 3:16.87 was the third fastest time in Olympic history. With her first-place victories in 2012, Felix became the first American woman to win three gold medals at an Olympics since Florence Griffith-Joyner at the 1988 Olympics.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="937"] Allyson Felix at 2012 Olympics[/caption]

Felix made history again at the 2016 Summer Games in Rio, earning a silver medal in the 400-meter race, making her the most decorated woman in U.S. track and field history with a total of seven medal wins. She broke her tie with U.S. Olympic legend Jackie Joyner-Kersee, who had won six medals. (Joyner-Kersee is married to Felix's coach Bobby Kersee.) The second place finish was a bittersweet outcome for Felix, who had hoped for the gold. She finished just .07 seconds after Shaunae Miller of the Bahamas, who dove across the finish line to victory.

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="1200"] Allyson Felix wins 6th gold medal at 2016 Rio, Brazil Olympics[/caption]

Felix put the disappointment behind her and finished the 2016 Olympics on top, winning two gold medals in the 4x100-meter relay and 4x400-meter relay, along with her U.S. teammates. With nine Olympics medals, six gold and one silver, Felix became the most decorated woman in U.S. track and field history. She tied Jamaican sprinter Merlene Ottey for the title of most decorated woman in Olympic track and field history.