NEW YORK — Alaysha Johnson could not contain her joy. Nor did she have any interest in doing so. She batted her lashes, kept her smile wide, belted her raspy laugh and happily posed for every camera.
A season in which Johnson made the Olympic team, and reached the final in Paris, closed with her on a pedestal. A fashion collab with Ryoko Rain. A glam photoshoot in New York City.
A hot girl moment with Meg Thee Stallion. Getting her name introduced to a sold-out crowd at Icahn Stadium, with music and fireworks sparkling beneath the night sky. Wearing a custom denim tracksuit by Diesel, which she designed, featuring a bib crafted for her style and torso, for which she lobbied.
Advertisement And when she finished second in the 100-meter hurdles, posting a time of 12.43 seconds, she earned a $25,000 check with her name on it. The most she’s ever made in a race.
“The way that they put this together,” Johnson said, still beaming, “I wasn’t expecting this, for sure. Especially the walk-in. That was insane.
We need to have that every track meet.” Athlos NYC, a women’s-only sprint showcase, was a vibe. It was an event sanctioned by World Athletics, but it also was a grand party, a celebration of women sprinters.
The event, seeking to capitalize off the sport’s interest following an Olympics , was the answer to a question the sport has been trying to answer for decades: What would it take to get track to catch on in America? Globally, the sport does well. But in the U.