Personal information | |
---|---|
Nationality | American |
Born |
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
June 29, 1989
Residence | Carbondale, Illinois |
Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) |
Weight | 88 kg (194 lb) |
Sport | |
Country | United States |
Sport | Track and field |
Event(s) | Hammer throw |
College team | Southern Illinois University Carbondale |
Club | NYAC & NIKE |
Turned pro | 2011 |
Medal record
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Gwendolyn Denise "Gwen" Berry (born June 29, 1989) is an American track and field athlete who specializes in the hammer throw. She is the American record holder in the hammer with her mark of 76.31 m (250 ft 4 1⁄4 in) set in May 2016. She also ranks third on the all-time lists for the weight throw with 24.70 m (81 ft 0 1⁄4 in). She is a three-time national champion in the weight throw at the USA Indoor Track and Field Championships. She was the gold medallist in the hammer at the 2014 Pan American Sports Festival.
Born to Michael Berry and Laura Hayes, she grew up in Florissant, Missouri and attended McCluer High School. While there she was a basketball player but started taking part in track in the off-season and competed in the triple jump. She began studying for a degree in psychology and criminal justice at Southern Illinois University Carbondale in 2007. She took up throwing events for the Southern Illinois Salukis collegiate team and came fourth in the hammer throw at the 2008 USA Junior Championships.
Her throwing improved the following year and she was the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) champion in the weight throw and shot put and reached eleventh in the former event at the NCAA Indoor Championships. In 2010 she earned NCAA All-American honours in the weight throw and shot put indoors and the hammer throw outdoors (taking fourth at the 2010 NCAA Outdoors). That season she set bests of 16.30 m (53 ft 5 1⁄2 in) for the shot put, 20.48 m (67 ft 2 1⁄4 in) for the weight throw and 62.55 m (205 ft 2 1⁄2 in) for the hammer throw.