Brianne Theisen
Encyclopedia
Brianne Theisen is a Canadian
track and field
athlete who competes in the heptathlon
and women's pentathlon
. She was the Canadian heptathlon champion in 2009 and represented her country at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics
.
A national junior champion in 2006, she took the heptathlon gold medal
at the Pan American Junior Championships the following year. She enrolled at the University of Oregon
and broke a number of school records in her first three years, winning back-to-back NCAA heptathlon titles in 2009 and 2010. She has also won twice at the NCAA Indoor Championship, including a collegiate pentathlon record in 2011.
and attended Humboldt Collegiate Institute. While at high school
she took part in track and field
, volleyball
and soccer. She found her niche in the track and field combined events and represented Canada at the 2005 World Youth Championships in Athletics
, coming seventeenth in the girl's heptathlon. She was the national junior champion in the heptathlon in 2006 and took part in the 2006 World Junior Championships in Athletics
in Beijing
. In her senior year at high school she won the gold medal
at the 2007 Pan American Junior Championships.
, where she started a major in business administration in late 2007. In her first year she was the runner-up at the Pac-10 championships and came fourth in the heptathlon at the NCAA Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championship
. Theisen began her second year with a third place finish in the pentathlon at the NCAA Women's Indoor Track and Field Championship
. The outdoor season saw her establish herself among the world elite in the heptathlon. She won the Pac-10 title, then set a personal record of 6086 points to win her first NCAA outdoor title, before finally going on to take the national heptathlon title that summer. This earned her a spot on the national team to make her senior international debut at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics
. As Canada's only representative in the event, she came in fifteenth place. In addition to her athletic breakthrough, she also received a mention for All-Academic honours that year.
Theisen continued her strong college form into the following year, winning her first pentathlon title at the 2010 NCAA Indoors with a college record of 4396 points and repeating as the Pac-10 Outdoor heptathlon champion. She also took a second consecutive victory at the NCAA Outdoors, improving her personal record to 6094 points. This total ranked her within the top twenty athletes in her discipline worldwide that year. At the NCAA Outdoors she had her second win of the competition when she helped the Oregon women's team to the 4×400-meter relay title. That year she also led Oregon to a decathlon/heptathlon double at the Texas Relays
, as she claimed the win alongside her schoolmate Ashton Eaton
.
In 2011 she won at the NCAA Indoor Championships for a second time and broke Jacquelyn Johnson's collegiate record mark with a total of 4540 points from five events.
College titles
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
track and field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
athlete who competes in the heptathlon
Heptathlon
A heptathlon is a track and field athletics combined events contest made up of seven events. The name derives from the Greek hepta and athlon . A competitor in a heptathlon is referred to as a heptathlete.-Women's Heptathlon:...
and women's pentathlon
Women's pentathlon
The pentathlon is a sports contest made up of five events . The women's pentathlon was contested in the Olympics from 1964 until 1980, and it was replaced in the 1984 Games with the heptathlon. It had a different set of events than the ancient Olympic pentathlon...
. She was the Canadian heptathlon champion in 2009 and represented her country at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics
2009 World Championships in Athletics
The 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics were held in Berlin, Germany from 15–23 August 2009. The majority of events took place in the Olympiastadion, while the marathon and racewalking events started and finished at the Brandenburg Gate....
.
A national junior champion in 2006, she took the heptathlon gold medal
Gold medal
A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...
at the Pan American Junior Championships the following year. She enrolled at the University of Oregon
University of Oregon
-Colleges and schools:The University of Oregon is organized into eight schools and colleges—six professional schools and colleges, an Arts and Sciences College and an Honors College.- School of Architecture and Allied Arts :...
and broke a number of school records in her first three years, winning back-to-back NCAA heptathlon titles in 2009 and 2010. She has also won twice at the NCAA Indoor Championship, including a collegiate pentathlon record in 2011.
Early life
She was raised in Humboldt, SaskatchewanHumboldt, Saskatchewan
Humboldt is a Canadian city located in the province of Saskatchewan, 113 km east of Saskatoon at the junction of Highway 5 and Highway 20. The city is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Humboldt No...
and attended Humboldt Collegiate Institute. While at high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
she took part in track and field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
, volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
and soccer. She found her niche in the track and field combined events and represented Canada at the 2005 World Youth Championships in Athletics
2005 World Youth Championships in Athletics
The 2005 World Youth Championships in Athletics is the 2005 version of the World Youth Championships in Athletics. It was held in Marrakesh, Morocco.The host stadium was Stade Sidi Youssef Ben Ali.-Boys:-Girls:-Medals table:...
, coming seventeenth in the girl's heptathlon. She was the national junior champion in the heptathlon in 2006 and took part in the 2006 World Junior Championships in Athletics
2006 World Junior Championships in Athletics
The 2006 World Junior Championships in Athletics is the 2006 version of the World Junior Championships in Athletics. It was held from 15 August to 20 August at the Chaoyang Sports Center in Beijing, the capital of the People's Republic of China....
in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
. In her senior year at high school she won the gold medal
Gold medal
A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...
at the 2007 Pan American Junior Championships.
College athletics
She received a sports scholarship at the University of OregonUniversity of Oregon
-Colleges and schools:The University of Oregon is organized into eight schools and colleges—six professional schools and colleges, an Arts and Sciences College and an Honors College.- School of Architecture and Allied Arts :...
, where she started a major in business administration in late 2007. In her first year she was the runner-up at the Pac-10 championships and came fourth in the heptathlon at the NCAA Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championship
NCAA Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championship
NCAA team champions for Women's Outdoor Track and Field-By school:-See also:*AIAW Intercollegiate Women's Outdoor Track and Field Champions*NCAA Women's Indoor Track and Field Championship*NCAA Men's Outdoor Track and Field Championship...
. Theisen began her second year with a third place finish in the pentathlon at the NCAA Women's Indoor Track and Field Championship
NCAA Women's Indoor Track and Field Championship
NCAA team champions for Women's Indoor Track and Field-See also:*AIAW Intercollegiate Women's Indoor Track and Field Champions*NCAA Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championship*NCAA Men's Indoor Track and Field Championship...
. The outdoor season saw her establish herself among the world elite in the heptathlon. She won the Pac-10 title, then set a personal record of 6086 points to win her first NCAA outdoor title, before finally going on to take the national heptathlon title that summer. This earned her a spot on the national team to make her senior international debut at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics
2009 World Championships in Athletics
The 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics were held in Berlin, Germany from 15–23 August 2009. The majority of events took place in the Olympiastadion, while the marathon and racewalking events started and finished at the Brandenburg Gate....
. As Canada's only representative in the event, she came in fifteenth place. In addition to her athletic breakthrough, she also received a mention for All-Academic honours that year.
Theisen continued her strong college form into the following year, winning her first pentathlon title at the 2010 NCAA Indoors with a college record of 4396 points and repeating as the Pac-10 Outdoor heptathlon champion. She also took a second consecutive victory at the NCAA Outdoors, improving her personal record to 6094 points. This total ranked her within the top twenty athletes in her discipline worldwide that year. At the NCAA Outdoors she had her second win of the competition when she helped the Oregon women's team to the 4×400-meter relay title. That year she also led Oregon to a decathlon/heptathlon double at the Texas Relays
Texas Relays
The Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays are an annual track and field competition held at Mike A. Myers Stadium in Austin, Texas. The University of Texas serves as host for the event, held on either the first or second weekend of April....
, as she claimed the win alongside her schoolmate Ashton Eaton
Ashton Eaton
Ashton Eaton is an American decathlete, who competes for the Oregon Track Club Elite team based in Eugene, Oregon. He currently holds the world record in the heptathlon.-College career:...
.
In 2011 she won at the NCAA Indoor Championships for a second time and broke Jacquelyn Johnson's collegiate record mark with a total of 4540 points from five events.
Competition record
| 2005 | World Youth Championships 2005 World Youth Championships in Athletics The 2005 World Youth Championships in Athletics is the 2005 version of the World Youth Championships in Athletics. It was held in Marrakesh, Morocco.The host stadium was Stade Sidi Youssef Ben Ali.-Boys:-Girls:-Medals table:... |
Marrakesh, Morocco | 17th | Girl's heptathlon |
| 2006 | World Junior Championships 2006 World Junior Championships in Athletics The 2006 World Junior Championships in Athletics is the 2006 version of the World Junior Championships in Athletics. It was held from 15 August to 20 August at the Chaoyang Sports Center in Beijing, the capital of the People's Republic of China.... |
Beijing Beijing Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's... , China |
17th | Heptathlon |
| 2009 | World Championships 2009 World Championships in Athletics The 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics were held in Berlin, Germany from 15–23 August 2009. The majority of events took place in the Olympiastadion, while the marathon and racewalking events started and finished at the Brandenburg Gate.... |
Berlin Berlin Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union... , Germany |
15th | Heptathlon 2009 World Championships in Athletics – Women's heptathlon The Women's Heptathlon at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics was held at the Olympic Stadium on August 16 and August 17. A number of high profile heptathletes did not feature at the competition, including defending champion Carolina Klüft and 2007 bronze medallist Kelly Sotherton, who were... |
College titles
- NCAA Indoor Championships: Pentathlon (2010 and 2011)
- NCAA Outdoor Championships: Heptathlon (2009 and 2010), 4×400 m relay (2010)
External links
- Athlete profile at Athletics Canada