EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — There are moments when sprinter McKenzie Long would like to pick up the phone, call her mother and tell her some good news that just happened.
Like winning three titles at the NCAA Championships for Mississippi earlier this month. Or signing the professional contract with Adidas shortly after. Or now, as she is on the verge of securing a spot in the Paris Games, a dream they dreamed together.
These are the moments when she misses her mother the most. Tara Jones, 45, died of a heart attack in her sleep earlier this year, Long explained.
“It’s hard because I’m always like, ‘Mom, what do you think about this?’ … Because my mom wanted to be there — she wanted to take care of all the practical stuff,” said Long, who won her 200-meter semifinal heat at the U.S. Olympic track and field qualifying trials on Friday night to secure a spot in the final. “I don’t want to stop involving them in this track and field world. I want to involve them in every way I can. And that’s what keeps me going, what motivates me.”
One of her last conversations was about whether she might make the team to represent the red, white and blue. That would be a monumental – and emotional – moment, she said. That’s why it hurt so much that she didn’t get a place in the 100-meter dash in the preliminary rounds.
Long said she received a gift from an officer before her 100th birthday. He gave her an empowerment bracelet and said he was thinking of her.
“I was close to tears,” Long said. “My coach came back and said, ‘Are you OK? You look like you’re about to cry.’ … I felt like I could have done a lot better. I was just beating myself up.”
However, she has opened a new chapter in the history of the 200m race and is now focusing on the 200m. The field is strong, led by Sha’Carri Richardson, the reigning 100m world champion, and Gabby Thomas, the bronze medalist in the 200m at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
Like Long, both Richardson and Thomas won their heats on Friday. Thomas said Long’s story inspires her.
“She does incredible things on the track despite everything she’s going through in her personal life,” said Thomas, who set a world-best time of 21.78 seconds. “It just gives me energy to compete in my races and do well.”
Long’s mother always instilled confidence and faith in her.
“I rely on myself a lot,” Long said. “She always said, ‘You have to find your voice and learn to speak for yourself.'”
At the state championships earlier this month, Long won the 100- and 200-meter titles and was also part of the winning 4×100-meter relay team. Mom was there every step of the way, she said – watching over her. Long set up her starting blocks for the 100, and they were already positioned correctly.
This has never happened to Long before.
“I was shocked,” Long told the media at the NCAA championships. “I just thought, ‘Mom, that’s you.’ … I immediately thought of her. I’m honestly, no joke, I’ll remember that race for the rest of my life. That was her.”
Her races always made her mother so nervous, so her mother would sometimes go outside when she competed. Long said the last race her mother competed in was the outdoor SEC meet last year, where she won the 200.
“Now I know she’s running with me and can watch me run,” Long said. “I know it makes her proud. She doesn’t have to be nervous anymore. I’m doing this for her.”
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AP Summer Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games
Pat Graham, Associated Press
