Filipino-American Kristina Knott chooses to stay calm even after going through a scare just weeks before the Tokyo Olympics.

Despite testing positive for COVID-19 four weeks ago, Knott managed to recover quickly and headed back on track.

“Relaxed lang siya, pero focused (She’s just relaxed, but focused). I like her state of mind going into competition,” said Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association marketing and communications chief Edward Kho, who paid the team a visit and watched Knott in her first hour of training.

In Japan, Knott was welcomed by the community in Nagasaki and started training exclusively at the Transcosmos Track and Field stadium on Wednesday morning, July 21, in Isahaya City in southern Nagasaki.

“It was a great opening day. We had a good session on both the weight room and the track,” said coach Rohsaan Griffin, who traveled with Knott and strength and conditioning coach Carlo Buzzichelli.

Though her lone event, the women’s 200m run, won’t kick off until August 2, the Philippine athletics star arrived early to get used to the summer heat of Japan, which ranges from 32°C to 34 °C.

She will see action at the newly renovated Olympic Stadium in Kasumigaoka at the Shinjuku area of the host city.

“[It’s] convenient,” Knott described the national stadium, where the opening ceremonies will be held on Friday, July 23.

The 25-year-old sprinter and her team will transfer to the Shimabara municipal oval in Shimabara City on Saturday, July 24, as her current venue will be used as a vaccination site for local residents.

Knott currently holds the national record in the women’s 200m run after she eclipsed the mark twice in the country’s hosting of the 2019 Southeast Asian Games with a time of 23.01 seconds. – Rappler.com