"It was a very emotional moment walking off that mat for what will most likely be the last time on U.S. soil," Harrison said on Facebook. "It's been a long road from that young girl with a big dream when I stepped on the mat all those years ago.
"Now begins the final push to Rio and I am so excited and proud to be representing the greatest country on earth."
Harrison is defending her gold medal in judo at the Rio Olympics in August in Brazil. She became the first American to win a gold Olympic medal in the sport 2012 in London. She's expected to retire after the games. Since winning gold she's designed a line of athletic clothing and told NBCSports.com last year she has considered a career in mixed martial arts and UFC. Her former judo training partner and Olympic bronze medalist, Ronda Rousey, became a UFC champion and the most famous female athlete in the world en route to an acting career. Harrison said Rousey has given her contacts if she wants to give the sport a try.
One lesson Harrison said she learned from Rousey is to have a plan for life after judo and the Olympics, especially after gold medal swimmer Allison Schmitt confessed to suffering from depression after the games in London.
"Ronda Rousey quit judo for a year," Harrison told USA Today in June 2015. "She didn't know what to do with her life. One of the things I'm working on is making sure that once Rio is over, I have a game plan. There's nothing scarier for an athlete than to wake up and not have a goal."
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