Allyson Felix has a retirement date, but her legacy is still evolving

Allyson Felix is approaching her final lap on the track.

The 11-time Olympic medalist will compete at her last U.S. Championships this week at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon. When she steps onto the track for the women’s 400m on Thursday, it will be 21 years to the day since she first competed at the U.S. Championships.

At that competition in 2001 — also held at Hayward Field — a then 15-year-old Felix didn’t emerge from the first round of the women’s 200m. She finished her heat in 23.44 seconds, more than a second behind Marion Jones, who went on to win (and later be stripped of) the 200-meter national title.

“My family found me somewhere in the stands and I was crying (because) I didn’t make the final,” says Felix. “And my brother (Wes) just looked at me like, ‘What did you think was going to happen? That you were going to beat Marion Jones? As a teenager?’

“I remember being so disappointed, but also, that was my starting point in the sport. I never would have imagined that I would be returning to Hayward so many times.”

Even for an athlete who has spent most of her life running around a 400-meter track, it is a remarkable full-circle moment.

And Felix’s Hayward story could add another chapter in July, when the venue hosts to the 2022 World Championships — marking the first time the event is held in North America. Felix is aiming to be named to the U.S. relay team, but hasn’t yet decided if she will compete in the individual 400m event if she finishes in the top three at U.S. Championships.

But while Felix’s days competing on the track are winding down, her impact and legacy in the sport is still evolving.

This season, Felix is working with sponsor Athleta — as well as &Mother, a non-profit co-founded by U.S. teammate