Change of guard for US after standout Olympics
MOSCOW, Russia (AP) — One year after a remarkable Olympics, an encore at the World Championships was always going to be tough for the US track and field team.
The Americans won a whopping 29 medals at the London Games, but they are refusing to predict a number for this year. Instead, they are building heavily on a team flush with fresh faces seeking to dominate the sport for years to come.
And within the blur of a gold-filled career, Allyson Felix suddenly finds herself a veteran. Still only 27, Felix says in a fake drawn-out voice, “Yes, I am old now.”
And in a sense, she is, considering she burst onto the scene a decade ago at the 2003 Worlds in Paris and has now become someone the rookies can look up to.
“It is great to be able to give them some advice,” said Felix, who also won three gold medals at the London Olympics. “It is definitely a different experience to be one of the older people on the team now.”
Years ago, it was a teenage Felix making her name on the team. Now there’s Mary Cain, a 17-year-old rookie looking to learn all she can from her first Worlds.
For Brianna Rollins, it will be different. The 21-year-old American already showed her stuff when she ran the fastest 100-metre hurdles in 21 years at the US championships.
If she continues her sterling form and holds off Olympic champion Sally Pearson of Australia to win the event in Moscow, Rollins will be the youngest world gold medallist in the event.
For men’s head coach Mike Holloway, the formula to stimulate them is as easy as effective.
“I encourage them to do the things that they did to get here,” Holloway said. “Don’t change anything.”
And for the veterans, Holloway wants them to “share their experiences, make them understand what it takes”.
The impact of youth can even be felt on some of the star-studded athletes still dealing with the physical and emotional wear and tear of an Olympic year.
Olympic decathlon champion Ashton Eaton gets a jolt just spending time with the new kids.
“They bring a different fire to the team,” Eaton said. “You can see the enthusiasm and the newness in their eyes and you are kind of like, OK, I’ll show you how it is done.”