Masai Russell defines her goal for upcoming years as she aims to be the 'best ever in the sport'

American hurdler Masai Russell recently opened up about her future goals with regard to her track career. This comes just a month after she bagged $10,000 courtesy of finishing third in Alexis Ohanian's inaugural Athlos meet.

Russell, 24 has registered numerous impressive performances in the 100m hurdles so far in her career. In 2024, she achieved a significant milestone by securing her first Olympic gold medal. Now, with her sights set on future victories, Russell has expressed her determination to repeat her success in the upcoming quadrennial event.

In an interview with World Athletics, Russell said that she is aiming to break the indoor and outdoor world records in the 100m hurdles event. She also stated that she is looking forward to leaving a 'legacy' behind for other aspiring young athletes. She said:

"My goal is to be the world indoor record-holder, the world indoor champ, world outdoor record-holder, world outdoor champ - and Olympic champ again. If I’m not shooting to be the best ever in the sport, then what am I doing?"

Russell further added:

"I’m trying to build a legacy for those who look up to me: the little girls who don’t believe they’re big enough or strong enough to do it."

Russell is currently the fifth fastest of all time in the 100m hurdles event with a run time of 12.25 seconds. She achieved this remarkable feat in the finals of the 2024 US Track and Field Trials, securing her victory in the event and earning a well-deserved spot on the 2024 Olympic team.

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Masai Russell opens up about the 2023 World Athletics Championships

Russell after winning the 100m hurdles Olympic gold medal at the Stade de France (Image via Getty Images)

Masai Russell opened up about her disqualification in the semifinals of the 2023 World Championships that cost her a place in the event finals. This came just a few months after she registered a third-place finish at the 2023 US Championships.

In a conversation during Justin Gatlin's Ready Set Go Podcast, Russell stated that she was quite confident of making it to the finals of the tournament. The 24-year-old also mentioned that she was shocked after she touched the hurdle. She said (at 00:50):

"It was definitely a very emotional time for me because I did really see myself making it to that World Championship final and when I hit the hurdle, I like literally couldn’t believe it."

Russell had made a good start to her campaign at the 2023 World event by finishing second in the first heats of the event. She clocked a run time of 12.60 seconds but failed decisively in the next round of the tournament.