One of the most-decorated track athletes of all time added to her medal collection at these World Championships. Allyson ran the second leg of the world record-setting mixed-4x400 relay to secure her first gold since giving birth to Camryn last year. That's impressive in its own right, and even more so considering that she went into labour at just 32 weeks and suffered from a pregnancy-related condition, preeclampsia, that put her life (never mind her track career) in real jeopardy. Even as she and Camryn recovered, her contract negotiations with sponsor Nike fell through. Allyson wanted contractual guarantee that she wouldn't be financially punished if she didn't perform at her best after giving birth; Nike declined. Now Allyson is the first sponsored athlete to represent female-focussed brand Athleta.
Winning that mixed-4x400 relay gave Allyson her 12th world championship gold medal and made her the winner of more world titles than any other track and field athlete in history. The athlete she was previously tied with? Usain Bolt. She left Doha with two golds in all, bagging another thanks to her stellar run in the women's 4x400 relay semifinal. (Though she didn't run in Team USA's winning final, she still received gold because of her semifinal participation.) Long story short, Allyson is leaving Doha even more of a legend than before.