Trying to keep a step ahead of Felix

Allyson Felix, 21, daughter of a preacher, graduate of Los Angeles Baptist High and a student at USC who is one semester from her education degree, is the defending world champion in the 200-meter race and the 2004 Olympic silver medalist in that event. Felix will run Sunday at the Adidas Track Classic at the Home Depot Center in Carson.

Felix, who is training at UCLA, is being coached by Bob Kersee, husband and trainer of former Olympic great Jackie Joyner-Kersee. As the Beijing Olympics approach, Felix and Kersee are plotting an ambitious course where, Felix says, she wants to run the 200, two relays and either the 100 or 400.

“If everything were to go my way,” Felix said, “I’d be on both relay teams, run the 200 and possibly the 100 or 400. For right now I’m trying to be ready for all of them because I want to run the 4x100 and 4x400 relays at worlds this year. And then we’ll see.”

Last week Felix won the 100 and the 400 events at a meet in Doha, Qatar, and she ran the second legs of both the 400 and 1,600 relays for a victorious USA team at the Penn Relays last month.

But before the world’s top-ranked female 200-meter runner hits the track for her best event this season, she answered some questions.

Question: Who will win “Dancing with the Stars”?

Answer: Laila Ali. She’s great and what she’s doing is way harder than it looks. Maybe I can be on some time.

Q.: Who should have won “American Idol”?

A: “Melinda. I liked her voice the best and how she was a banker, just an average person. I’d buy her CD.”

Q.: Dodgers or Angels this weekend?

A.: Dodgers.

Q.: Any sport that looks impossible?

A.: Figure skating. I’d have trouble staying up much less doing triple jumps.

Q.: What’s on the iPod?

A.: Ne-Yo, he’s from Sherman Oaks, right nearby. Beyonce, Jay-Z, Corinne Bailey Rae. That’s who I’m listening to when I’m warming up.

Q.: Any favorite Joyner-Kersee moments?

A.: At the Atlanta Olympics, when Jackie hurt her leg and she still competed. It didn’t matter if she won gold or not.

Q.: Best USC football player?

A.: Reggie Bush of course. I think I could take him in the 200. Maybe. It would be close. Don’t tell him I said that.

Q.: Plans for that education degree?

A.: I want to teach fourth and fifth graders someday. I love kids that age. They have so much energy.

As for her race Sunday, Felix said she was not aiming for any particular time. “It’s early in the season,” she said. “I just need to see where I stand.”

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diane.pucin@latimes.com