Alexis Love is on a relentless pursuit of competing in the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics. She has been chronicling her journey via writing and using her story to track and field prominence to inspire others.
Love ran the 100m, 200m, 4x100m and 4x400m events this past season. In 2017, she notched a personal best of 11.15s in the 100m and 1:31.00 in the 4x200m, according to All-Athletics.com.
At a young age, her AAU coach taught her the Bible verse Philippians 4:13. Love still uses the verse to help her during track meets.
“Until this day when I get on that starting line and I know that my heart is racing, I’m like ‘you know what? I can do all things’ and I feel this peace,” Love said. “I have this peace that overtakes me and I’m ready and then that’s when I flip the that switch as soon as the gun goes off.”
Her perseverance and love for journaling led Love to write a book called “Alexis Love: The Diary.” The book aims to help others reach their own potential.
After not qualifying for the 2016 Olympics, a despondent Love decided to burn her journal. However, one of her mentors urged her otherwise; Love decided to use the journal entries from all throughout her life to help others.
“I woke up everyday at five o’clock for the next couple months and … I’ve been typing 2000 words a day,” Love said about what transpired after the Rio Olympic trials. “My book is just about my life story and how you can create a life that you will someday love.”
Love supports herself in her pursuit of the 2020 games, which required her to follow a dense schedule of working full-time, practicing, and exercising. Love usually wakes up at 5:00AM or 6:00AM to practice and have a one-hour session lifting in the gym.
After practice, she works at the chiropractor’s office adjacent to the gym. Love then gets massaged and stretch before going home for the night.
“When I actually have track meets and competitions and I get to fly, that’s when I’m really at peace,” Love said. “I’m going to do something stressful, but at the same time, it’s soothing because I’m always on the go.”
Representing Team USA in the Penn Relays was one of Love’s favorite moments this year. She ran the anchor leg for the USA vs. the World 4x100m. Months after the competition, the event still felt surreal to Love. Her relay team came in third at 42.90 seconds, a personal best for Love.
“To actually put that uniform on for the first time, that is a feeling I would never forget,” she said about representing the U.S. “It looked so right, it looked so perfect … I had a designated spot just for the jersey.”
Love also competed throughout Europe, including Sweden, Germany, and Ireland.
Track and Field came to her when she was 12 years old. Love was running for the Manatee Mustangs, an AAU team in her hometown of Palmetto, Florida.
By her sophomore year at Palmetto high school, Love was on the Varsity team, her coaches saw her potential to get an athletic scholarship and colleges started taking notice.
Love earned a scholarship to Murray State University and was named the 2012 Ohio Valley Conference Female Track Athlete of the Year.
