Few sprinters are as decorated as 26-year-old Allyson Felix. The Los Angeles native will be a three-time Olympian once London kicks off in eight days. She’s won eight World Championships gold medals, an Olympic gold and individual silver Olympic medals in her specialty, the 200 meters.

Felix tells theGrio.com & NBC Sports when she’s in the starting blocks, she’s in her zone.

“It actually goes by very fast,” Felix said. “I don’t hear any noise from the crowd…it just feels like it’s me and the track out there with my competitors.”

Felix calls herself an advocate for “clean sport.”

“I’m such a believer in a level playing field,” Felix said of the several sprinters who have withdrawn or been banned from Olympic competition because of doping. “And it just really…just disgusts me when someone cheats because I feel like I have a gift of running. I’ve been blessed with that.”

All eyes will be on Felix in London.