Sanya Richards

Sanya Richards Richards at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics Nationality:  United States Distance(s): 400 m Date of birth: February 26, 1985 (1985-02-26) (age 24) Place of birth: Kingston, Jamaica Residence: Austin, Texas Height: 173 centimetres (5 ft 8 in) Weight: 61 kilograms (130 lb)

Medal record Competitor for  United States Women's athletics Olympic Games Gold 2008 Beijing 4×400 m relay Gold 2004 Athens 4×400 m relay Bronze 2008 Beijing 400 m World Championships Gold 2003 Paris 4×400 m relay Gold 2007 Osaka 4×400 m relay Gold 2009 Berlin 400 m Gold 2009 Berlin 4x400 meter relay Silver 2005 Helsinki 400 m

Sanya Richards (born February 26, 1985 in Trelawny, Jamaica) is a track and field athlete who competes internationally for the United States. She won two Olympic Gold medals in the 4×400m relay at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece and the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. She also won an individual bronze medal at the 2008 Olympics, for the 400m. She won a gold medal in the 2009 World Championships in Berlin in the 400 meters race.

Career

Richards left Jamaica for the USA at the age of 12 and became a US citizen in May 2002. At St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale, she lettered in Track and Field in high school and is a member of the National Honor Society, ending her high school academic career with a 4.0 grade point average. In 2002 she was named National High School Female Athlete of the Year, USA Track and Field's Youth Athlete of the Year, and Track and Field News Women's Prep Athlete of the Year.

She has won a silver medal in the 400 meters at 2005 World Championships in Athletics. In 2006, together with Jeremy Wariner (400 m) and Asafa Powell (100 m) she won her sixth out of six IAAF Golden League events (100 m) in the same season, which earned her a total of $250,000. She broke Valerie Brisco-Hooks' US record of 48.83 with a 48.70 at the end of the 2006 season and was named IAAF 2006 Female World Athlete of the Year^[1] After failing to qualify for the 400m at the 2007 World Championships in Athletics in Osaka due to illness which caused her to finish fourth in the US trials, Richards was the favourite to win gold in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing and qualified fastest for the final, but went out of the blocks too quickly and was overtaken in the finishing straight by Christine Ohuruogu of Great Britain and Shericka Williams of Jamaica, consigning her to the bronze medal.

In the 2009 season, Richards took the 400 m national title in 50.05 seconds, finishing over half a second faster than the second placed Debbie Dunn. Although she expected faster times, she stated that winning the 2009 World Championships in Berlin was her number one goal.^[2] A win in 49.46 s at the Golden Gala in Rome broke Marita Koch's record for most sub-50 second runs, bringing Richards' career total to 36.^[3]
Coming up to the World Championships, Richards won her fourth Golden League race in the 400m with the time of 49.34 seconds and won her first global championship in the 400m at the 2009 IAAF World Athletics Championships is Berlin with a world leading time of 49.00 seconds. Richards also anchored team USA to a gold medal in the Women's 4x400m Relay in the sixth fastest time in history of 3.17.83 minutes, Richards split time in the relay was unofficially 48.43 seconds. After a career defining World Championships, Richards went on to win her final two Golden League races with a new world leading times of 48.94 seconds (Zurich) and 48.83 seconds (Brussels) to share in the $1M dollar jackpot with Men's 3000m/5000m winner Kenenisa Bekele and Women's Pole Vault winner Yelena Isinbayeva, each receiving $US333,333,333; this was the third time Richards had won the Golden League Jackpot. Sanya Richards ended her massive season on a high by winning silver in the 200m at the IAAF World Athletics Final behind World Champion Allyson Felix with a time of 22.29 seconds, and by winning gold in the 400m with a time of 49.95 seconds; achieving her 41st sub-50second 400m run.

Richards has since gone on to win the gold medal at the World Championships in Berlin with a world leading time of 49.00 seconds in the 400m, and anchored her USA team mates Debbie Dunn, Allyson Felix and Lashinda Demus to a gold medal in the 4x400m Relay while together running the sixth fastest time in history. Richards also won all of the remaining three Golden League meets over 400m to share in the 2009 Jackpot with Kenenisa Bekele (Men's 3000/5000m) and Yelena Isinbayeva (Women's Pole Vault). Richards final three Golden League times were 49.34 in Paris, 48.94 (WL) in Zurich, and finally 48.83 (WL) in Brussels on the 4th of September. Richards has now run eight times under 50 seconds in 2009 with a total of 40 in her career.

Sponsorship

In Aug 2007, Sanya was signed as a global brand spokesperson for Nutrilite, the world's leading brand of vitamin, mineral and dietary supplements (based on 2006 sales). Nutrilite products are sold through Amway corporation.^[4]

Personal

Richards attended St. Thomas Aquinas High School and returned last year to give a speech at the Homecoming pep rally. Before leaving Jamaica she atttended the Vaz Preportory and the Immaculate Conception High School. Richards graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in 2006 with a degree in management information systems. She is a singer and a dancer, regularly putting on shows for family and friends. Since 2007, she has been engaged to current New York Giants cornerback & Super Bowl champion, Aaron Ross. They have been dating since 2003.^[5][6]

She suffers from the Behçet's disease (a form of vasculitis), which has caused her difficulties in her training and athletics career.^[7]

Statistics

Richards at the 2007 World Championships in Athletics

Competition record

Personal bests

• All information from IAAF profile.^[8]

References

External links

• Official Website
• YouTube Videoblogs
• IAAF profile for Sanya Richards
• USA T&F - Sanya Richards
• Sanya Richards Pictures
• Sanya Richards discusses her goals and disappointments coming into the 2007 IAAF World Championships in Osaka, Japan
• TheFinalSprint.com's interview with sprinter Sanya Richards
• Flotrack Interview with Sanya Richards

Awards
Preceded by Yelena Isinbayeva Tirunesh Dibaba	Women's Track & Field Athlete of the Year 2006 2009	Succeeded by Meseret Defar Incumbent