It is the dream of all sprinters to make it into the national team. For a spot to represent the nation, one has to compete and rank among the top three at the USATF Championships. Recently an athlete’s hope to achieve this dream was dashed as she narrowly missed the team. Alaysha Johnson’s chances were looking quite good with her recent performances. She consistently improved her times and showed great potential in the 100m hurdle event. Despite her impressive performance at the USATF Outdoor Championships, Alaysha Johnson fell short of securing a spot on the national team, finishing in 4th place.

Alaysha has faced challenges in her athletic career since she started competing after college. The 26-year-old ran all of her career without a sponsor. After her recent disappointment on the track, legendary athlete Sha’Carri Richardson tried to cheer her up. Even now, Alaysha has to compete solo despite her manifold achievements.

Alaysha Johnson’s Journey: Overcoming Challenges 

Alaysha has not allowed the lack of resources to be a handicap. She has trained hard under her coach and achieved a lot of wins in the last two seasons. She shattered multiple meet records and won a silver medal at the USATF Outdoor Championships in 2022. However, the Texas Relays roster did not list her as a pro athlete. She could not understand it and used Twitter to vent, saying, “I dedicated my entire life to a sport to be ostracized from it for what?” Her fans rallied behind her then and called out the officials for their discrimination against an unsponsored player.

Following this blow, the sprinting legend dedicated herself to training. Recently she took part in the 100m hurdle at USATF Outdoor Championships and finished in 4th place with 12.46 seconds on the clock. Initially, she was tied with Masai Russell for third place. But later, it was announced that Alaysha finished .002 seconds after Russell. Following her loss, her coach Morgan Wells posted many pictures of her training. He wrote a post describing her recent achievements, saying, “you’ve done things and seen places people will never achieve”. Sha’Carri Richardson also posted on her Instagram account congratulating the hurdler for having “had the courage to step against the normal”. Her fans also commented, asking Alaysha to look beyond this failure towards the future.

Alaysha Johnson’s journey of perseverance continues

Both her coach and her fans have asked Alaysha to keep pushing forward and not let this setback define her. They believe that she has the strength to overcome any obstacles that come her way. The next tournament ahead of her is the Diamond League in Silesia and Monaco. Alaysha can climb higher than her current sixth rank on the al-times list if she has some support.

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Thankfully, she has not lost her fighting spirit. Alaysha showed her resilience when she reposted her coach’s words, “You can never lose if you never quit”. Some fans commented on the post asking someone to sponsor this great runner. With the right team and proper resources, she would definitely make it to the top of the field.

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