Courtney Okolo (born March 15, 1994) is an American track and field sprinter who usually competes in the 400 metres. She starred at Carrollton (Texas) Newman Smith High School where she won multiple individual state championships.
 Okolo in 2017 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | March 15, 1994 Dallas, Texas, U.S. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (173 cm) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 130 lb (59 kg) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | United States | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Track and field | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Event | 400 metres | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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In college, she ran for the Texas Longhorns.[1] She was fourth in the 400 m at the 2013 NCAA Outdoor Championships, and then the following year she completed an individual and relay double at the 2014 NCAA Outdoor Championships. She set a collegiate record in the 400 m that year when winning the Big 12 Outdoor Championships in 50.03 seconds.[2] In April 2016, she broke her own collegiate record, running 49.71 seconds at the LSU Alumni Gold Meet. Okolo won consecutive titles in the women's 400 m and 4 × 400 m relay at the 2015 NCAA Indoor Championships. In 2016 Okolo won 400m and 4 × 400 m relay titles in both the Indoor and 2016 NCAA Outdoor Championships. After the season ended, she was awarded the Bowerman Award.[3] She also won the Honda Sports Award as the nation's best female track and field competitor in 2016.[4][5]
Internationally she won both individual and relay events for the United States at the 2013 Pan American Junior Athletics Championships and the 2015 NACAC Championships in Athletics. More gold came in the 4 × 400 m relay at the 2016 IAAF World Indoor Championships[6] and 2016 Olympic Games.[7]
Personal records
edit- 200-meter dash – 22.93 (2015)
- 400-meter dash – 49.71 (2016)
International competitions
edit| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Pan American Junior Championships | Medellín, Colombia | 1st | 400 m | 52.19 |
| 1st | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:36.48 | |||
| 2015 | NACAC Championships | San José, Costa Rica | 1st | 400 m | 51.57 |
| 1st | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:25.39 | |||
| 2016 | World Indoor Championships | Portland, United States | 1st | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:26.38 |
| Olympic Games | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | 1st | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:19.06 | |
| 2017 | DécaNation | Angers, France | 1st | 200 m | 23.41 |
| 1st | 400 m | 51.96 | |||
| 2018 | World Indoor Championships | Birmingham, United Kingdom | 1st | 400 m | 50.55 |
| 1st | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:23.85 | |||
| NACAC Championships | Toronto, Canada | 4th | 400 m | 52.21 | |
| 1st | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:26.08 | |||
| 2019 | World Relays | Yokohama, Japan | 2nd | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:27.65 |
| Pan American Games | Lima, Peru | 3rd | 400 m | 51.22 | |
| 1st | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:26.46 | |||
| World Championships | Doha, Qatar | 1st (h) | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:22.96 |
National titles
edit- NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships
- 400 m: 2014, 2016
- 4 × 400 m relay: 2014, 2016
- NCAA Division I Indoor Championships
- 400 m: 2015, 2016
- 4 × 400 m relay: 2015, 2016
References
edit- ^ "Texas sprinter Courtney Okolo honored by USTFCCCA". Hookem.com. February 9, 2016. Retrieved March 20, 2016.
- ^ "Courtney Okolo, Texas Sophomore, Sets New NCAA 400 Record of 50.03 at Big 12 Meet". LetsRun.com. May 19, 2014. Retrieved March 20, 2016.
- ^ "Courtney Okolo Wins The Bowerman Award ::: The Bowerman: The Nation's Top Award for Collegiate Track & Field Athletes". The Bowerman. Retrieved March 9, 2017.
- ^ "Texas' Courtney Okolo Named Honda Award Winner For Track & Field ::: USTFCCCA". Retrieved March 26, 2020.
- ^ "Okolo From the University of Texas Named the Honda Sport Award Winner for Track & Field". CWSA. June 16, 2016. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
- ^ "American women's 4x400 team wins gold at 2016 World Indoor Championships". OregonLive.com. Retrieved March 20, 2016.
- ^ Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics
External links
edit- Courtney Okolo at www.USATF.org
- Courtney Okolo at World Athletics
- Courtney Okolo at Team USA (archived)
- Courtney Okolo at Olympics.com
- Courtney Okolo at Olympedia
- Women's 400m | World Indoor Championships Birmingham 2018 via World Athletics on YouTube
