Veronica Campbell-Brown reflected on her fierce 200m rivalry with Allyson Felix over the years, admitting they pushed each other to greatness on the track.
One of the greatest yet most underrated rivalries in women’s sprinting involved Jamaica’s Veronica Campbell-Brown and America’s Allyson Felix,
Veronica Campbell-Brown recently admitted that Allyson Felix was her greatest threat in the 200m and they always gave fans a show whenever they raced against each other.
The retired Jamaican sprint queen revealed that she competed against several rivals in the 200m but singled out Allyson Felix as her greatest.
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Their rivalry dates back to the 2004 Athens Olympic Games where Veronica claimed the win in a personal best time of 22.05 seconds as Allyson Felix finished second in 22.18 seconds.
Allyson Felix got her revenge at the 2005 World Championships, where she claimed the win dominantly as Veronica was forced to finish fourth.
At the 2008 Olympic Games, Veronica Campbell-Brown successfully defended her title after losing to Allyson Felix at the 2007 World Championships, again. That was one bitter loss for Allyson Felix who was in the form of her life and a favourite to win.
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Their rivalry did not end there, in 2009 at the World Championships, Felix got her revenge but did not reign for long as Veronica Campbell-Brown claimed the world title in 2011. At the 2012 London Olympic Games, Felix had the last laugh with a gold medal in 200m.
Veronica Campbell-Brown gave tribute to Allyson Felix, revealing that she enjoyed competing against the American since she was fierce and always ready and in order to beat her, she also had to be in the form of her life.
“I’ve been around so long that I’ve had a lot of great rivalries but if I would think about the 200m, it would be Allyson. We raced over the years for many years, at one point, she was the one taking the world championship 200m, and I was taking the Olympics until I finally won the 200m in 2011,” Veronica Campbell-Brown said on the Ready Set Go podcast.
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“She finally won the 2012 Olympics in London, so I enjoyed racing Allyson, she is very fierce and I know that she doesn’t like to lose just like me and she is resilient.
“Whenever I showed up to race her, I knew I had to bring my A game because she would, and that motivated me because I always looked forward to racing her because we brought out the best in each other.”
In the 100m, Veronica Campbell-Brown competed against very formidable women and could not point out a single opponent who gave her a headache.
She made her Olympic debut in 2000 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia and for all those years, she had been racing against different women in the 100m.
“In the 200m, she was my greatest rival. In the 100m, I have raced people from way back, Marion and Shelly-Ann, Carmelita, Torrie, Edwards and Christine and the list goes on and on and on,” Veronica Campbell-Brown said.
Veronica Campbell-Brown retired in 2021 after an illustrious career spanning over two decades, during which she competed in five Olympic Games and made history as the only track and field athlete to win medals at five consecutive Olympics.
