Sanya Richards-Ross

Sanya Richards-Ross

Richards-Ross after winning gold medal of 4x400 relay during the 2012 Olympic Games.
Personal information
Born	(1985-02-26) February 26, 1985 (age 31) Kingston, Jamaica
Residence	Austin, Texas
Height	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Weight	137 lb (62 kg)
Sport
Country	United States
Sport	Track and field Sprinting
Event(s)	400 m
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)	400m: 48.70 (2006, AR)
Medal record Women's athletics Representing the  United States Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 4 0 1 World Championships 5 2 0 World Indoor Championships 1 1 0 Total 10 3 1 Olympic Games 2004 Athens 4×400 m relay 2008 Beijing 4×400 m relay 2012 London 400 m 2012 London 4×400 m relay 2008 Beijing 400 m World Championships 2003 Paris 4×400 m relay 2007 Osaka 4×400 m relay 2009 Berlin 400 m 2009 Berlin 4×400 m relay 2011 Daegu 4×400 m relay 2005 Helsinki 400 m 2015 Beijing 4×400 m relay World Indoor Championships 2012 Istanbul 400 m 2012 Istanbul 4x400 m relay World Relays 2014 Nassau 4×400 m relay 2015 Nassau Distance medley relay 2015 Nassau 4×400 m relay

Sanya Richards-Ross (born February 26, 1985) is a former Jamaican-American track and field athlete who competed internationally for the United States. At the 2012 Summer Olympics, she won gold in the 400 metres after finishing third at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Richards-Ross has also won Olympic gold in the 4×400 meters relay at the 2004 Summer Olympics, the 2008 Summer Olympics, and the 2012 Summer Olympics. She was the best 400m runner in the world for a decade, ranking No. 1 in the world from 2005-2009 and again in 2012.

In addition to her Olympic accolades, she is also a seven-time medalist at the World Championships in Athletics (five of which are gold). In 2009, she was the World Champion in the 400 metres.

As a freshman at the University of Texas in 2003, Sanya Richards won the NCAA national championship in the 400 meters with a time of 50.58. After her sophomore year in 2004, she turned pro.

At the Athens Olympics in 2004, Richards was part of the US team which finished first in the 4×400 meters relay. 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 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. Her 48.70 ranks her as the #7 woman performer of all time. It is the only time a woman has run under 49 seconds without another competitor running within a second of them in the same race.