BENGALURU: American track star Dalilah Muhammad , women’s 400m hurdles gold winner at the Rio Games, lauded champions like Neeraj Chopra and Letsile Tebogo who battled to glory without the best of support systems and hailed their phenomenal achievements.
“I remember watching Neeraj win the gold in Tokyo. That was actually my first experience watching him compete, and honestly, it was just phenomenal,” said Dalilah.
“And then you get to see the country that supports it and just what that does for the community and the people. It’s just so inspirational,” said the international brand ambassador of the TCS World 10K Bengaluru .
“America has great inspirational athletes. But some of my favourite athletes, and their stories that inspired me way more, come from elsewhere. I recently went to Botswana, I know Tebogo. And just being able to witness an athlete win an Olympic medal from a country that doesn’t have the system like America does, to produce such greatness is honestly phenomenal. And I think that can be done in so many different places like India,” she said.
The US athlete who won two Olympic gold and two silver besides owning the world record, is gearing to bow out on a high after missing the Paris Games. “I think a lot of people expect you to kind of go out when you can no longer do it at all. And for me, I want to go out knowing that I can still push myself,” she promised.
“This year, just as luck would have it, the World championships is the last competitive competition on our schedule. So hopefully I’ll be in Tokyo and that’ll be my last,” said the ace athlete, who last month ran her best season time at the Botswana Grand Slam meet .
Slam series a big boon
Giving her vote for the Grand Slam track series launched by Michael Johnson, Dalilah Muhammad said: “I absolutely love it. I think for us that means just making our sport a professional sport. We have the Diamond League schedule, but there’s not enough and we need more. The Grand Slam is really trying to push forward and giving athletes more opportunities to make money. It has started with the running events, but down the line we should also have the field events.”
She also backed World Athletics for introducing prize money in the Olympics. “I’m for it. We don’t do it for the money; however, it definitely helps. We need ways to support ourselves and be at such a high level, like the Olympics. I believe athletes should definitely be able to make a living from that.”
On her glittering career, Daliah said her best moment was the world record. “My best moment was breaking that world record in 2019, it was a 16-year-old record. For me it was more so about the talent of the women that came before me and that haven’t broken that record. So, it was just one of those redefining moments -- of where I had come and where I can even go further.”
Ready to leap for Faith
Expressing joy on three-time Olympic and World champion Faith Kipyegon ’s goal to be the first woman to run a mile under four minutes in June, Dalilah said: “When I heard about it, I was like, ‘How can I be there? How can I witness it in person?’ It’s hard for me to even put into words. Imagine what that means for just women’s sports. And to just hear women trying to break four minutes is amazing.” The Kenyan holds the women's mile world record of 4min 7.64sec, which she set in 2023.
“I remember watching Neeraj win the gold in Tokyo. That was actually my first experience watching him compete, and honestly, it was just phenomenal,” said Dalilah.
“And then you get to see the country that supports it and just what that does for the community and the people. It’s just so inspirational,” said the international brand ambassador of the TCS World 10K Bengaluru .
“America has great inspirational athletes. But some of my favourite athletes, and their stories that inspired me way more, come from elsewhere. I recently went to Botswana, I know Tebogo. And just being able to witness an athlete win an Olympic medal from a country that doesn’t have the system like America does, to produce such greatness is honestly phenomenal. And I think that can be done in so many different places like India,” she said.
The US athlete who won two Olympic gold and two silver besides owning the world record, is gearing to bow out on a high after missing the Paris Games. “I think a lot of people expect you to kind of go out when you can no longer do it at all. And for me, I want to go out knowing that I can still push myself,” she promised.
“This year, just as luck would have it, the World championships is the last competitive competition on our schedule. So hopefully I’ll be in Tokyo and that’ll be my last,” said the ace athlete, who last month ran her best season time at the Botswana Grand Slam meet .
Slam series a big boon
Giving her vote for the Grand Slam track series launched by Michael Johnson, Dalilah Muhammad said: “I absolutely love it. I think for us that means just making our sport a professional sport. We have the Diamond League schedule, but there’s not enough and we need more. The Grand Slam is really trying to push forward and giving athletes more opportunities to make money. It has started with the running events, but down the line we should also have the field events.”
She also backed World Athletics for introducing prize money in the Olympics. “I’m for it. We don’t do it for the money; however, it definitely helps. We need ways to support ourselves and be at such a high level, like the Olympics. I believe athletes should definitely be able to make a living from that.”
On her glittering career, Daliah said her best moment was the world record. “My best moment was breaking that world record in 2019, it was a 16-year-old record. For me it was more so about the talent of the women that came before me and that haven’t broken that record. So, it was just one of those redefining moments -- of where I had come and where I can even go further.”
Ready to leap for Faith
Expressing joy on three-time Olympic and World champion Faith Kipyegon ’s goal to be the first woman to run a mile under four minutes in June, Dalilah said: “When I heard about it, I was like, ‘How can I be there? How can I witness it in person?’ It’s hard for me to even put into words. Imagine what that means for just women’s sports. And to just hear women trying to break four minutes is amazing.” The Kenyan holds the women's mile world record of 4min 7.64sec, which she set in 2023.
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