Kara Winger, the reigning World Athletics Championships silver medalist in the women's javelin throw along with being a nine-time U.S. national champion and the 2015 gold medalist at the NACAC Senior Championships, joins DyeStat editor Erik Boal to celebrate a milestone episode ahead of competing for Team USA for the 18th time in her career Aug. 21 at the NACAC Championships in the Bahamas. Winger, 36, set the meet record of 197-11 (60.34m) in winning the title in Costa Rica in 2015, the same year her husband Russ Winger won the gold medal in the men's discus throw. She expresses gratitude for also being able to compete for the U.S. for the last time along with close friend Ariana Ince, who won the javelin gold medal at the NACAC meet in 2018 in Canada. Winger, who has also competed at six World Championships, four Olympics, two Pan American Games, along with The Match in 2019 in Belarus and the Athletics World Cup in 2018, reflects on making her first U.S. team at the Pan American Junior Championships in 2005 in Canada, as well as meeting her future husband for the first time at the NACAC Under-23 Championships in 2006 in the Dominican Republic, a meet where one of her future coaches, Dana Pounds, captured the javelin gold medal for the U.S. She explains her remaining schedule following the NACAC meet, which includes a pair of meets in Europe on Aug. 30 in Switzerland and Sept. 2 in Brussels, and the potential to qualify among the six athletes for the Diamond League final Sept. 8 in Zurich. Winger also confirms that even if she wins the NACAC title in the Bahamas, which would give her the World Athletics qualifying standard for the 2023 global championship meet in Hungary, that she will conclude her competitive career this year. She revisits her sixth-round throw of 210-1 (64.06m) on July 22 at the World Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., and the crowd reaction and the emotions she felt becoming the first American female athlete to earn a javelin medal in meet history, in addition to the U.S. earning a medal in every women's throwing competition for the first time with Chase Ealey winning the shot put crown, Brooke Andersen and Janee' Kassanavoid capturing gold and bronze in the hammer throw and Valarie Allman earning bronze in the discus throw. She also analyzes retiring at the same age in the same year with Allyson Felix and Michelle Carter, in addition to attending American JavFest for the first time in her career in July in Pennsylvania, as well as her future opportunities beyond competition as a coach, instructor, motivational speaker and her continued work in Colorado Springs as the Senior Director of Integrated Influencer Marketing for Parity.