EUGENE, Ore. — Kendall Ellis had a lot to reflect on after winning the 400 meters at the Olympic Trials.
Her best times in Saturday's semifinal and Sunday's final were her first in six years. She finished fourth at the Tokyo Olympic Trials, missing out on an individual Olympic team by seven-tenths but still qualifying for the relay. She was locked in a portable toilet for 10 minutes on Saturday, an hour before the semifinal.
An unforgettable moment came after Ellis crossed the finish line in 49.46 seconds at Hayward Field, when she was quickly embraced by 1992 Olympic 400m gold medalist Quincy Watts, who has been her coach for the past decade, first with the USC Trojans and then training professionally in Los Angeles.
Ellis, 28, laughed when asked what Watts said to her after the biggest win of her life. “Stop crying so much,” she said Watts joked.
Track and Field Trials: result | Broadcast Schedule
Training partner Rai Benjamin was also full of emotion. He was smiling in the stands alongside Watts. — and Michael Norman.
“The hard training, the sacrifices, the hard days, I know it all,” Norman said of Ellis before the final.
In 2017, Ellis made her first appearance at the U.S. Track and Field Championships after her junior year at the University of Southern California, where she placed third in the 400m final and was selected to the World Championship team.
In 2018, she broke 50 seconds for the first time, becoming the sixth-fastest woman in the world that year. 5th to 1st place relay anchor leg At the NCAA Championships held at the old Hayward Field.
In 2019, she placed second at nationals and was again selected to the world team.
Then, at the Tokyo Olympic Trials, Ellis was overtaken by Allyson Felix in the final 10 metres to qualify for the 400 metres.
“I was devastated. I couldn't stop crying,” Ellis said Sunday. “I remember just feeling really sad. I wish I'd come in fifth or sixth (and still be in the pool for the Olympic 4x400m relay). I didn't want to lose out by coming in fourth. But finding out I came in fourth today was certainly a lesson learned for me, telling myself I never want to go through that again.”
In 2022, Ellis was again runner-up at the national championships. At the 2022 World Championships in Eugene, she placed sixth and was eliminated in the first round.
“Two days before the start of the 2022 World Athletics Championships, I was overcome with anxiety and frozen in bed. I was physically unable to move or get up for several minutes.” She contributed to the World Athletics Federation.“Trapped under the sheets, I realised this was probably the worst my anxiety had ever been. Anxiety is mental but it manifests physically.”
Ellis said he considered retiring that year, but ultimately chose to keep running.
“I will continue to compete,” she wrote. “I will continue to fight, and for those who feel like they can't, I will continue to push myself to get to the finish line every single time.”
In 2023, she lost in the semifinals of the U.S. Championships. For the first time in her career, she was not selected for the U.S. team for the World Championships.
“Honestly, this is unknown territory for me and I hope it remains unknown,” she posted after the season ended.
In Sunday's final, Ellis was in lane eight, the same lane in 2021 when Felix overtook Ellis (then in lane seven) in the final meters of the trials.
This time, Ellis took the lead around the final corner, widening her lead over runner-up Aaliyah Butler, 20. Ellis' personal best before the weekend was 49.99 seconds. Sunday's time was 49.46 seconds.
“I feel like I'm the Kendall I was meant to be,” she said.
