200m silver medallist is unsponsored and has a job

The young woman who won the silver medal in yesterday’s 200m final at the World Championships in Doha is unsponsored, and worked as a caregiver and a server to support herself while pursuing her dream of competing at the World Championships.

24-year-old Brittany Brown of Iowa City, Iowa ran a personal best 22.22 for second place behind Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith, who ran 21.88 for a new British national record in the 200m. Asher-Smith also took the silver medal in the 100m final, where she set another national record in 10.83.

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Brown was an 11-time all-American at the University of Iowa, graduating in 2018. Since earning her spot on Team USA she had competed in several meets in Europe and winning a match in Belarus in September, which boosted her confidence.

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In a post-race interview, Brown said, “I’m unsponsored right now, and… yeah… You know, it’s definitely been hard… sometimes you walk in, and you’re with girls and you’re training with them, and you see them, and you go to meets and… they’re signed to this, their shoe company, and it’s like… at first it was mentally hard, you constantly get to hear, you’re not good enough, you’re not good enough. But you know, I just have to come to the realization that I am… and no matter who has signed me or who hasn’t signed me, I belong here… God has put me here, and I just constantly remind myself, not getting into my head with that factor, because that can definitely… mentally be a challenge, you know? But just reminding myself I belong here, no matter what shoe company, no shoe company… you know, just talking to myself–pep talking to myself every day. I belong here.”

200m silver medalist Brittany Brown opens up on life as an unsponsored athlete and working as a caregiver for adults with dementia and alzheimer's. pic.twitter.com/7iGyhBTE3O

— FloTrack (@FloTrack) October 3, 2019

When asked about how difficult it was financially, Brown says, “I mean, yeah. It’s my first year out of college, and… in college you’re supported by the school. You get that cheque every month. But now I have to work. I have to work around the practice schedule, and lifting… I’m not like other athletes who don’t have to work, which is OK, but you know… it was definitely a struggle, trying to manoeuvre practice and work, but I think it definitely set me up. I definitely learned some lessons from it, and without that, I wouldn’t be the woman I am today… I work with adults who have dementia and Alzheimer’s… I had other jobs, I waitressed… I just worked! Whatever job I could find, to sustain myself. I had some funding from USA Track & Field, and I was thankful for that. I had that, and I worked, and I went to practice, ate right, lifted, and it just all worked out. Even though it was hard in the beginning, it definitely was, but it all worked out.”

Brown kept her goal in front of her the whole time, and expressed gratitude for her bosses’ willingness to accommodate her schedule.

Something tells us this young athlete won’t go unsponsored for long.