Athlete mom Allyson Felix announces 2028 Olympics bid

Allyson Felix, widely considered to be the greatest female track-and-field athlete of all time, has announced that she will begin training for a bid to compete in the 2028 Olympic games — and she's asking, "What if motherhood makes you more, not less?'

Key Takeaways:

• Felix announced her return to competition on social media, saying she wanted to see what was possible for women after the age of 40.

• She also wrote about her belief that motherhood "makes you more, not less."

• Felix is the most decorated track-and-field athlete in history, and the mother to two children.

• She has spoken about how Nike tried to force her to take a 70% pay cut when she got pregnant, and has been an advocate for motherhood in sports ever since.

The Details:

Last week on social media, Allyson Felix announced that she will be attempting an Olympic comeback at 40 years old, with the hopes of competing in the 2028 games in Los Angeles, California.

She wrote:

"In a million years, I never thought I'd return. And somehow, here I am — reaching for LA 2028, on my own terms. I'm not here trying to relive who I was. I'm deeply proud of everything I've done. This is something different — a question that keeps pulling me in. What is still humanly possible... at this age?

The world tells women that after 40, we should slow down — be smaller, quieter, satisfied. But this is my love story with LA — the city that raised me... calling me to return to myself in a new way. It's scary. It's exciting. The most vulnerable I've ever been. And I don't know how it ends.

What if success isn't defined by the outcome — but by the courage it takes to try? What if chasing audacious dreams at any age is the bravest thing we do?"

With the post, she linked to a new website, More In Us, where she explained that she wanted to prove mothers can still be competitive. The site reads:

What if this isn't the end of the story? What if motherhood makes you more, not less? What if the best chapters — yours, hers, ours — are still being written? We don't know how this ends. Neither does [Felix]. But she's asking the question out loud. So the rest of us don't have to ask it alone.

The site continued, "The most decorated track and field athlete in American history is returning. Not because she has to. Because her daughter is old enough to watch."

According to an exclusive interview with Felix in Time magazine, no American sprinter has made the Olympic games in their 40s. She is hoping to prove that a mother in their 40s can still be competitive.

Why It Matters:

Felix became an outspoken advocate for motherhood in sports after Nike tried to force her to take a 70% pay cut when she got pregnant. When she also requested that she wouldn't be penalized for performing at a lower level while pregnant and postpartum, that request was also refused.

“I’ve been one of Nike’s most widely marketed athletes,” she wrote in a New York Times op-ed. “If I can’t secure maternity protections, who can?”

She said she had previously only imagined being a mother after she was finished with her track-and-field career — something echoed by other runners. Runner Phoebe Wright, who also had been sponsored by Nike, previously said, “Getting pregnant is the kiss of death for a female athlete. There’s no way I’d tell Nike if I were pregnant.”

Yet Felix continued to dominate after becoming a mother.

“Becoming a mom has been so incredible,” she said in an interview with Good Morning America. “It was a little scary starting out; I gave birth prematurely at 32 weeks, and saw my daughter fight in the NICU. Just… watching her grow has changed my life, it’s changed my motivation.... It’s so much bigger than on the track. It’s me as a mother, and me as an advocate for women, and I’m just really grateful that they are reflecting that.”

Felix is a seven-time Olympic gold medalist, with 11 medals overall. She is also a 10-time United States national champion, and has been a world champion in multiple years as well.

In addition to her athletic career, however, Felix has also become noteworthy for her motherhood advocacy. Though she did not compete in 2024, she teamed up with Pampers to create the first-ever nursery for athlete moms at the Paris Olympics. She said at the time:

“I just knew how difficult it was to compete at the top level after I had my daughter, and some practical things were really hard. And so when I joined the Athletes Commission of the IOC, I really wanted to be that voice for athlete moms, and just take away one less thing for them to worry about in the pressure of competition.

I think it really tells women that you can choose motherhood and also be at the top of your game and not have to miss a beat.”

She also created a child care fund for athlete moms competing in the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, securing $200,000 in grant money to cover child care costs for qualified female athletes, most of whom did not have corporate sponsorship.

After leaving Nike, she launched her own shoe line, Saysh, which includes a maternity-friendly return policy. As women’s feet grow and change during pregnancy, if they need a different shoe size for their Saysh Ones due to pregnancy, they can receive another pair for free. 

“Becoming a mom — it shifted my focus to thinking about this world that my daughter will grow up in,” she previously told Romper. “I don’t want her to have the same battle. [Motherhood] gave me that final bit of push that I needed and helped me find my voice so that I could speak on these very important issues.”

The Bottom Line:

Mothers are increasingly proving that they can still be at their best, not only competing at the highest levels, but winning, too. Motherhood does not hold anyone back from succeeding, and what women need is more support and resources, like what Felix offers, to help them thrive.