| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
 LaShawn Merritt |
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| Men's Athletics | ||
Competitor for the  United States |
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| Olympic Games | ||
| Gold | 2008 Beijing | 400 meters |
| Gold | 2008 Beijing | 4x400 m relay |
| World Championships | ||
| Gold | 2007 Osaka | 4x400 m relay |
| Gold | 2009 Berlin | 400 m |
| Gold | 2009 Berlin | 4x400m relay |
| Silver | 2007 Osaka | 400 m |
LaShawn Merritt (born June 27, 1986) is an American sprinter who specializes in the 400 meters.
Contents |
Biography
Merritt is a native of Portsmouth, Virginia where he graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School. LaShawn spent one year as a college athlete at East Carolina University, signing an endorsement contract with Nike during his first season of indoor track, making him no longer eligible to compete in an NCAA event. He is currently enrolled at Old Dominion University in Norfolk,Virginia.[1]
Career
Merritt came to prominence as a junior athlete at the 2004 World Junior Championships in Athletics. He took the gold medal in the 400 meters race, and set two junior world records as part of the American 4×100 and 4×400 meter relay teams.[2]
Merritt claimed the 400 m silver medal at the 2007 World Championships in Athletics in Osaka. He also won his first gold medal in a major tournament with the 4×400 meter relay team.
Merritt won the 400 m at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. A close race between Merritt and Jeremy Wariner was expected,[3] though it ultimately ended in a rout. The 0.99 second margin between Merritt's first-place finish and Wariner's second-place finish was the largest in an Olympic 400 m final.[4] His time of 43.75 makes him the fifth fastest 400 m runner in history.[5]
He won the 400 m at the 2009 US Championships, equalling his own world leading time of 44.50 seconds. At the 2009 World Championships in Athletics, in Berlin, Merritt went on to win the 400 m in a world-leading time of 44.06 seconds, once again beating Wariner.[6][7]
Achievements
| Year | Tournament | Venue | Result | Event |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | World Junior Championships | Grosseto, Italy | 1st | 400 m |
| 1st | 4x100 m relay | |||
| 1st | 4x400 m relay | |||
| 2006 | World Indoor Championships | Moscow, Russia | 1st | 4x400 m relay |
| World Athletics Final | Stuttgart, Germany | 3rd | 400 m | |
| World Cup | Athens, Greece | 1st | 400 m | |
| 1st | 4x400 m relay | |||
| 2007 | IAAF World Championships in Athletics | Osaka, Japan | 2nd | 400 m, PB 43.96 |
| World Athletics Final | Stuttgart, Germany | 1st | 400 m | |
| 2008 | Summer Olympics | Beijing, China | 1st | 400 m, PB 43.75 |
| Summer Olympics | Beijing, China | 1st | 4x400 m relay | |
| 2009 | IAAF World Championships in Athletics | Berlin, Germany | 1st | 400 m, 44.06 |
| IAAF World Championships in Athletics | Berlin, Germany | 1st | 4x400 m relay |
Personal bests - Outdoor
- 200 meters - 19.98 s (2007)
- 300 meters - 31.30 s (2009)
- 400 meters - 43.75 s (2008)
Personal bests - Indoor
- 60 meters - 6.68 s (2006)
- 200 meters - 20.40 s (2005)
- 300 meters - 31.94 s (2006)
- 400 meters - 44.93 s (2005)
- 500 meters - 1:03.38 (2006)
References
- ^ http://www.usatf.org/athletes/bios/Merritt_LaShawn.asp LaShawn Merritt
- ^ Grosseto - Three World Junior records set in the space of 90 minutes. IAAF (2004-07-18). Retrieved on 2009-06-02.
- ^ Forde, Pat (2008-08-08), Hold on to your medals ... The Dash is checking in from Beijing, ESPN, http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/summer08/columns/story?columnist=forde_pat&id=3523021, retrieved 2008-08-08
- ^ Hersh, Philip (2008-08-21), In the men's 400 meters, LaShawn Merritt's a fast learner, Los Angeles Times, http://www.latimes.com/sports/olympics/la-sp-olymentrack22-2008aug22,0,7811586.story, retrieved 2008-08-21
- ^ IAAF International Association of Athletics Federations - IAAF.org - Statistics - Top Lists
- ^ "400 Metres - M Final". August 21, 2009. http://berlin.iaaf.org/results/bydiscipline/disctype=4/sex=M/discCode=400/combCode=hash/roundCode=f/results.html#detM_400_hash_f.
- ^ Grohmann, Karolos (2009-08-21), Merritt crushes Wariner again for 400m title, Reuters, http://www.reuters.com/article/sportsNews/idUSTRE57K51Q20090821, retrieved 2008-08-22
External links
- Official Web Site of LaShawn Merritt
- IAAF profile for LaShawn Merritt
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