We are excited to share one of our fave stories from espnW here on FitSugar!
By Adena Andrews
The flags have been lowered, the crowds are silent, the commercials have finished and the flashbulbs have dimmed. The 2012 London Olympics are over and the reality of post-Games life is setting in for athletes. However, just because the Olympics are finished, it doesn't mean things have slowed down.
For Kellie Wells, who won bronze in the 100-meter hurdles, the running around didn't stop on the track, as her schedule has been jam-packed in the weeks since the Olympics.
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After London, she spent a month in Sweden, Switzerland, Germany and Croatia competing in the Diamond League series of track meets. Then Wells flew home to Virginia, where she did autograph sessions, made an appearance at a NASCAR race and experienced her newfound celebrity among fans from Hampton University, her alma mater.
"When I got home, it was absolutely crazy," Wells said. "There were news stations at the airport and tons of Hampton alumni and students. It took me two hours to get out of the airport because I took the time to sign everyone's autographs. It was so crazy but touching."
Wells also dealt with the dark side of fame as part of a media firestorm surrounding fellow hurdler Lolo Jones. Jones, who finished fourth in the 100 hurdles, got more exposure than other hurdlers through marketing before and during the Olympics. Her sponsors included McDonald's, Red Bull and Oakley.
After the race, Wells was interviewed with silver medalist Dawn Harper, who expressed her distaste for the amount of coverage Jones received.
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In the interview, Harper said, "I just felt as if I worked really hard to represent my country in the best way possible, and to come away with the gold medal, and to honestly seem as if, because their favorite [Jones] didn't win, all of sudden it's just like, 'We're going to push your story aside and still gonna push this one.' That hurt. It did. It hurt my feelings."
