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Morgan Uceny

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Morgan Uceny
Personal information
Born (1985-03-10) March 10, 1985 (age 39)
Plymouth, Indiana
Height5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)
Weight115 lb (52 kg)
Sport
Country United States
Event1500 m
College teamCornell Big Red
Clubadidas
Turned pro2007
Coached byTerrence Mahon
Retired2016
Achievements and titles
World finals
Personal best(s)(800 m) 1:58.37
(1500m) 4:00.06
(Mile) 4:24.6

Morgan Uceny (born March 10, 1985) is a retired American track and field athlete who specialized in middle distance running. Uceny won three national championships and was the 2011 IAAF Diamond League Champion at 1500 meters. She ended 2011 as the first American since 1985 to be ranked number one in the world in the 1500 m by Track & Field News.

She represented her country at the 2012 Summer Olympics, 2007 Pan American Games and the 2011 World Championships in Athletics. Her personal records are 1:58.37 minutes for the 800 meters and 4:00.06 minutes for the 1500 meters.

Personal life

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Uceny was raised in Plymouth, Indiana, with her father, Marty, her mother, Brenda, and her two older brothers Alex and Matt. She is of Czech descent through her great-grandfather.[1] As a child she loved basketball and aspired to play in the WNBA. She ran track and played basketball in high school, also running cross-country her freshman and sophomore years, but decided to quit and focus on basketball and track. She won the state 800 meter championship her Junior year. In March 2017, Morgan married professional rock climber Shane Messer.

College career

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Uceny attended Cornell University and graduated in 2007 as a Four-Time All-American:[2] Indoor 800m (2006, 2007) & Outdoor 800m (2005, 2007).

Professional career

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Uceny took a bronze medal over 800 m at the 2008 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships and was the winner in the mile at the 2010 indoor nationals.[3]

In the 2011 season she won the 1500 m at the Brussels Diamond League, out-sprinting a loaded field and setting the world leading time of 4:00.06, with a closing 400m of 61 seconds. At the 2011 IAAF World Championships in Daegu, she was tripped by Kenyan runner Hellen Obiri who had fallen, and ended up placing 10th in the final, well out of medal contention.[4][5] Despite the result, Uceny finished the 2011 season ranked No.1 in the world.[6][7]

Uceny won the national titles in the 1500 m at the 2012 US track and field Olympic Trials, qualifying for her first Olympics, alongside Shannon Rowbury, and Jenny Simpson. At the London Games, Uceny and Rowbury made it to the final, but a mid-race clash with Ekaterina Kostetskaya meant she fell hard onto the track as the pack moved on,[8] injuring her back and right side.[9] She did not finish the race and left the stadium in tears.[6]

Uceny once again made the 1500 m final at the 2014 USA Championships, but was clipped around halfway through the race and fell. Uceny ran 4:04.76 in the 1500 metres at the Paris Diamond League to redeem herself and this was her fastest time since 2012 summer.[10]

Uceny ran a 4:11.18 1500 m en route to 4:29.39 mile at Fort Washington Avenue Armory. Uceny ran a season best 4:09.31 1500 m at June 2015 Sainsbury's Birmingham Grand Prix. At US championship 1500 m, Uceny finished 21st.[11] Uceny ran a season best 4:34.02 mile at Sir Walter Miler hosted by Meredith College.

Uceny ran 4:09.21 1500 m at NYRR Millrose Games. Uceny ran 2:02.00 near Boston, Massachusetts, 4:03.94 for 1500 at Furman University elite women race, placed 5th at the 1500 m final at 2016 US Olympic Trials (track and field) and placed 10th in 4:24.6 at 2016 Fifth Avenue Mile.[12] Olympian and former world number one Morgan Uceny has announced her retirement from professional track and field.[13]

International competitions

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Representing the  United States
Year Competition Venue Position Event Notes
2007 Pan American Games Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 11th (h) 800 m 2:04.13
2011 World Championships Daegu, South Korea 10th 1500 m 4:19.71
2012 Olympic Games London, United Kingdom DNF 1500 m DNF

National championships

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US Championships
Year Distance Time Place Ref.
2007 800 meters 2:01.75 4th [14]
2008 indoor 800 meters 2:04.12 3rd [15]
2008 800 meters 2:02.16 6th [16]
2009 800 meters 2:01.32 6th [17]
2010 indoor 1500 meters 4:19.46 1st [18]
2010 800 meters 2:00.86 5th [19]
2011 1500 meters 4:03.91 1st [20]
2012 1500 meters 4:04.59 1st [21]
2013 1500 meters 4:31.32 8th [22]
2014 indoor 1500 meters 4:20.49 8th [23]
2014 1500 meters 4:24.01 12th [24]
2015 indoor 1 mile 4:38.13 7th [25]
2015 1500 meters 4:21.20 21st [11]
2016 1500 meters 4:06.94 5th [26]

References

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  1. ^ "IAAF Relays bio" (PDF). Retrieved January 7, 2024.
  2. ^ "2007 Cornell University Big Red Morgan Uceny biography". Cornell Big Red. Retrieved December 1, 2016.
  3. ^ "2011 USATF Morgan Uceny biography". USATF. Retrieved December 1, 2016.
  4. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on February 24, 2014. Retrieved April 8, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  5. ^ "Morgan Uceny hopes upward trajectory continues in 2012 - Track & Field News | NBC Olympics". Archived from the original on June 24, 2012. Retrieved July 2, 2012.
  6. ^ a b Olympics 2012: Morgan Uceny falls during 1,500-meter final - Indystar.com, 10 August 2012
  7. ^ 2011 World Championships in Athletics – Women's 1500 metres
  8. ^ "U.S. runner Morgan Uceny falls during 1,500-meter final". USAToday. August 11, 2012. Retrieved August 12, 2012.
  9. ^ Creason, Tim (August 19, 2012). "Uceny Ponders Future After Heartbreaking Olympics". South Bend Tribune. Retrieved August 19, 2012.
  10. ^ "Terrence Mahon to Coach Elite Group for B.A.A." September 30, 2013.
  11. ^ a b "2015 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships results". USATF.
  12. ^ New Balance 5th Avenue Mile Professional Women[permanent dead link] nyrrc.org. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
  13. ^ US OLYMPIAN MORGAN UCENY ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT - December 14, 2016 Global Athletics & Marketing. Retrieved by December 14, 2016.
  14. ^ "USATF - Events - 2007 AT&T USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships".
  15. ^ "USATF - Events - 2008 AT&T USA Indoor Track & Field Championships".
  16. ^ "USATF - Events - 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Track & Field".
  17. ^ "USATF - Events - 2009 USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships".
  18. ^ "USATF - Events - 2010 USA Indoor Track & Field Championships".
  19. ^ "USATF - Events - 2010 USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships".
  20. ^ "USATF - Events - 2011 USA Masters Outdoor Track & Field Championships".
  21. ^ 2012 Olympic trials usatf.org
  22. ^ Outdoor Track & Field Championships results usatf.org
  23. ^ Outdoor Track & Field Championships results usatf.org
  24. ^ "Complete Results: 2014 USA Track & Field Championships - 6/25/2014 to 6/29/2014". USATF.
  25. ^ Indoor results flashresults.com/
  26. ^ 2016 Olympic Trials USATF. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
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