Alica Schmidt, a German track and field star, is staying positive after she and her team failed to qualify for the final at the World Athletics Championships this past weekend following a fifth-place finish in the 4×400 meter mixed relay.

The 23-year-old athlete, who has been dubbed “the World’s Sexiest Athlete” by a number of supporters and websites, recently took to Instagram to reflect on the heartbreak.

“Not the result we wanted in yesterday‘s 4×4 mixed relay and we know that we are capable of a lot more,” Schmidt wrote Sunday alongside a photo of herself at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon.

“But heads up and on to the next one! 4x400m relay on Saturday next week 🙏🏼 nevertheless I‘m thankful to be here on my first world championships and gain a lot of experience.”

Schmidt appeared laser-focused Wednesday in a new fitness video that featured her weightlifting.

“The final preparations for the weekend are done ✔️ 🔜 4x400m relay 💯,” she captioned the video on Instagram.

Schmidt announced last month that she was headed to the US to compete in the World Track Championships.

“The last few months, I’ve worked my ass off and I’m so happy that the hard work paid off,” she wrote on Instagram at the time. “Honestly I‘m so excited for the next few weeks🔥☺️ this was one of my biggest goals this year and it still feels unreal 🥺.”

Prior to the World Championships, Schmidt competed at nationals in June, with the event taking place at The Olympiastadion in Germany’s Olympiapark Berlin. She also took part in the International Leichtathletikeeting Meeting Anhalt 2022, a World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze Level Series.

Schmidt said last summer that she was “taking a break” from track and field, unsatisfied with the outcome of her Tokyo Olympics run. She had traveled to the Summer Games but never got an opportunity to compete. 

The German team was disqualified in the mixed 4×400 meter relay for making contact with the Jamaican team. Schmidt also failed to secure a spot in the preliminary 4×400 meter relays. 

Despite what unfolded, Schmidt said in a Sept. 2021 Instagram post that she was starting “preparation” for 2022.

“Can‘t wait for new challenges and pushing my limits,” she wrote at the time.about:blank

Beyond her prowess in track and field, Schmidt also dipped her toes into modeling last September when she walked in Milan Fashion Week for Boss.

Article Source: https://nypost.com/2022/07/21/german-runner-alica-schmidt-suffers-heartbreak-at-world-championships/