Monica Hargrove
Encyclopedia
Monica Hargrove is an American
track and field
athlete who specializes in the 200
and 400 metres
. She won the silver medal at the 2006 IAAF World Indoor Championships
as part of the 4×400-meter relay team, and also set a world best in the distance medley relay
at the Penn Relays
that year.
, Connecticut
, she began her amateur track career at Georgetown University
. There she was selected as an All-America
n in 2002, 2003 and 2004 for her part in Georgetown's distance medley relay
team. She competed for the Georgetown Hoyas
in the Big East Conference
, forming part of the outdoor champion 4×400 meter relay team in 2002, and winning the indoor 500 meter race in 2003. In 2004 Hargrove suffered a number of injury setbacks and, after graduating with a degree in psychology
, she took on a volunteer counselor role at a high school track and field camp. She stated that the presence of performance enhancing drug use had made a professional track career less appealing to her. However, motivated by the atmosphere in the camp, she return to her track career in mid-2005.
. Running with Debbie Dunn
, Tiffany Williams, and Mary Danner, she won the silver medal in 3 min 28.63 seconds, her first major medal in international competition. She experienced more team success that year, setting a world best of 3:37.16 in the distance medley relay at the Penn Relays
with Rachelle Boone-Smith
, Lauryn Williams
, and Hazel Clark
.
In 2007 she won 400 m at the Boston Indoor Games
, setting an indoor best of 52.85 seconds. She also had fifth place finish at the Reebok Grand Prix
in 2007. She competed in Europe in the summer of 2008, taking third at the DN Galan
, and fourth at the London Grand Prix
and DecaNation
meetings.
, narrowly beating Aliann Pompey
. Success continued in the relay events, as she set a world leading time in the 4×400-meter relay with Natasha Hastings
, Allyson Felix
and Sanya Richards
at the 2009 Penn Relays. This time was only bettered by the medal winning teams at the World Championships
that year. A sixth place finish at the national track and field championships in June meant that she had not qualified for the US team at the 2009 World Championships
.
She was a prominent fixture on the European athletics circuit, competing at IAAF Golden League
and Super Grand Prix
meets. This included a win at the 2009 DecaNation competition, and second place finish at the Athens Grand Prix, where she set a new 400 m best of 50.39 seconds.
Near the end of the 2009 season, Hargrove was among the top twelve 400 m runners (and the fifth fastest American) that year. As one of the top ranked runners on the IAAF World Athletics Tour
, she was entered in the 2009 IAAF World Athletics Final
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
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 specializes in the 200
200 metres
A 200 metres race is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 m track, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques are needed to successfully run the race. A slightly shorter race, called the stadion and run on a straight track, was the first...
and 400 metres
400 metres
The 400 metres, or 400 metre dash, is a common sprinting event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 . On a standard outdoor running track, it is exactly one lap around the track. Runners start in staggered positions and...
. She won the silver medal at the 2006 IAAF World Indoor Championships
2006 IAAF World Indoor Championships
The 11th IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations was held in Moscow from March 10 to March 12, 2006 in the Olimpiyski Sport arena....
as part of the 4×400-meter relay team, and also set a world best in the distance medley relay
Distance Medley Relay
The distance medley relay is an athletic event in which four athletes compete as part of a relay. Unlike most track relays, each member of the team runs a different distance. A distance medley relay is made up of a 1200 meter leg, or three laps on a standard 400 meter track; a 400 meter leg, or one...
at the Penn Relays
Penn Relays
The Penn Relays is the oldest and largest track and field competition in the United States, hosted annually since April 21, 1895 by the University of Pennsylvania at Franklin Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
that year.
College career
A native of New HavenNew Haven, Connecticut
New Haven is the second-largest city in Connecticut and the sixth-largest in New England. According to the 2010 Census, New Haven's population increased by 5.0% between 2000 and 2010, a rate higher than that of the State of Connecticut, and higher than that of the state's five largest cities, and...
, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, she began her amateur track career at Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
. There she was selected as an All-America
All-America
An All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n in 2002, 2003 and 2004 for her part in Georgetown's distance medley relay
Distance Medley Relay
The distance medley relay is an athletic event in which four athletes compete as part of a relay. Unlike most track relays, each member of the team runs a different distance. A distance medley relay is made up of a 1200 meter leg, or three laps on a standard 400 meter track; a 400 meter leg, or one...
team. She competed for the Georgetown Hoyas
Georgetown Hoyas
Georgetown's nickname is The Hoyas, but its mascot is "Jack the Bulldog." Various breeds of dogs have been used by the sports teams as mascots since the early 1900s. Several notable bull terriers like Sergeant Stubby and "Hoya" were used at football games in the 1920s, as was a Great Dane in the...
in the Big East Conference
Big East Conference
The Big East Conference is a collegiate athletics conference consisting of sixteen universities in the eastern half of the United States. The conference's 17 members participate in 24 NCAA sports...
, forming part of the outdoor champion 4×400 meter relay team in 2002, and winning the indoor 500 meter race in 2003. In 2004 Hargrove suffered a number of injury setbacks and, after graduating with a degree in psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
, she took on a volunteer counselor role at a high school track and field camp. She stated that the presence of performance enhancing drug use had made a professional track career less appealing to her. However, motivated by the atmosphere in the camp, she return to her track career in mid-2005.
Professional career
The 2006 season represented a breakthrough into the elite level of competition in the United States. She finished fourth in the 400 meters at the US indoor championships and was selected for the US relay team at the 2006 IAAF World Indoor Championships2006 IAAF World Indoor Championships
The 11th IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations was held in Moscow from March 10 to March 12, 2006 in the Olimpiyski Sport arena....
. Running with Debbie Dunn
Debbie Dunn
Debbie Dunn is an American sprinter, who specializes in the 400 metres. Originally from Jamaica, she attended Fairmont Heights High School in Maryland, then Norfolk State University, and became an American citizen in 2004....
, Tiffany Williams, and Mary Danner, she won the silver medal in 3 min 28.63 seconds, her first major medal in international competition. She experienced more team success that year, setting a world best of 3:37.16 in the distance medley relay at the Penn Relays
Penn Relays
The Penn Relays is the oldest and largest track and field competition in the United States, hosted annually since April 21, 1895 by the University of Pennsylvania at Franklin Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
with Rachelle Boone-Smith
Rachelle Boone-Smith
Rachelle Boone-Smith is an American sprint athlete.She won the 200 metres silver medal at the 2005 World Championships in Athletics. Prior to the 2005 World Championships she had competed only in one international major event, namely the 2004 World Indoor Championships where she did not reach the...
, Lauryn Williams
Lauryn Williams
Lauryn Williams is a track and field sprint athlete, competing internationally for the United States...
, and Hazel Clark
Hazel Clark
Hazel Mae "Peachy" Clark-Riley , née Hazel Mae Clark, is an American middle-distance runner who specializes in the 800 meters middle distance race. Clark was a member of the U.S. Olympic team in 2000, 2004 and 2008. She has won six national titles and two USA Olympic trials during her...
.
In 2007 she won 400 m at the Boston Indoor Games
Boston Indoor Games
The Boston Indoor Games, known as the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix for sponsorship reasons, is an annual indoor track and field meet which is held in late January or early February at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center...
, setting an indoor best of 52.85 seconds. She also had fifth place finish at the Reebok Grand Prix
Reebok Grand Prix
The Adidas Grand Prix, formerly the Reebok Grand Prix, is an annual athletics meeting at the Icahn Stadium in New York City, United States. Previously one of the IAAF Grand Prix events, it is now part of the IAAF Diamond League.-World records:...
in 2007. She competed in Europe in the summer of 2008, taking third at the DN Galan
DN Galan
-External links:**...
, and fourth at the London Grand Prix
London Grand Prix
The Aviva London Grand Prix is an annual athletics event at the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre in London, England.Previously one of the five IAAF Super Grand Prix events, it is now part of the IAAF Diamond League...
and DecaNation
DecaNation
DecaNation is an annual track and field meeting organized by the French Athletics Federation since 2005. The competition comprises national teams of athletes competing in a decathlon, with each athlete competing in their specialised event to score points for their respective countries...
meetings.
2009 season
Hargrove won the 600 meter race at the Millrose GamesMillrose Games
The Millrose Games is an annual indoor athletics meet held on the first Friday in February in New York City. They will be held at the Armory in Washington Heights in 2012, after having taken place in Madison Square Garden from 1914 to 2011...
, narrowly beating Aliann Pompey
Aliann Pompey
Aliann Pompey is a Guyanese sprinter who specializes in the 400 meters.Aliann graduated from Cohoes High School and received her bachelor's degree from Manhattan College in 1999....
. Success continued in the relay events, as she set a world leading time in the 4×400-meter relay with Natasha Hastings
Natasha Hastings
Natasha Monique Hastings is an American sprint athlete of Jamaican and Trinidadian descent.Hastings began her track career at a very early age and made a first place win at the USATF Junior Olympics in the 400 metres in the Youth Girls division. She attended A...
, Allyson Felix
Allyson Felix
Allyson Felix is a track and field sprint athlete, who competes internationally for the United States, primarily in the 200 meters. She also competes at the 100 meters and the 400 meters distances...
and Sanya Richards
Sanya Richards
Sanya Richards-Ross is a track and field athlete who competes internationally for the United States. She won an Olympic gold medal in the 4×400 meters relay at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China, an individual bronze medal at the 2008 Olympics for the 400 m, and a gold medal in the 2009...
at the 2009 Penn Relays. This time was only bettered by the medal winning teams at the 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....
that year. A sixth place finish at the national track and field championships in June meant that she had not qualified for the US team at the 2009 World Championships
United States at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics
United States compete at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics from 15–23 August. A team of over 100 athletes was announced in preparation for the competition. Team USA athletes honoured Jessie Owens' memory by displaying the letters JO on their competition singlets. Selected athletes achieved...
.
She was a prominent fixture on the European athletics circuit, competing at IAAF Golden League
2009 IAAF Golden League
The 2009 Golden League is the 12th edition of the IAAF's annual series of six athletics meets, held across Europe, with athletes having the chance to win the Golden League Jackpot of $1 million.-Programme:- Men :- Women :...
and Super Grand Prix
IAAF Super Grand Prix
The Super Grand Prix was an annual series of athletics meetings organised by the International Association of Athletics Federations .- Meetings :Current meetings for 2009- External links :*...
meets. This included a win at the 2009 DecaNation competition, and second place finish at the Athens Grand Prix, where she set a new 400 m best of 50.39 seconds.
Near the end of the 2009 season, Hargrove was among the top twelve 400 m runners (and the fifth fastest American) that year. As one of the top ranked runners on the IAAF World Athletics Tour
IAAF World Athletics Tour
The IAAF World Athletics Tour was an annual global circuit of one day athletics competitions organized by the International Association of Athletics Federations...
, she was entered in the 2009 IAAF World Athletics Final
2009 IAAF World Athletics Final
The 7th IAAF World Athletics Final was held at the Kaftanzoglio Stadium in Thessaloniki, Greece on September 12 and September 13, 2009. The competition represented the culmination of the 2009 IAAF World Athletics Tour, a selection of athletics meetings which began on September 20, 2008 at the...
.
Personal bests
| Event | Time (sec Second The second is a unit of measurement of time, and is the International System of Units base unit of time. It may be measured using a clock.... ) |
Venue | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 200 metres 200 metres A 200 metres race is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 m track, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques are needed to successfully run the race. A slightly shorter race, called the stadion and run on a straight track, was the first... |
23.34 | Gainesville, Florida Gainesville, Florida Gainesville is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Alachua County, Florida, United States as well as the principal city of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area . The preliminary 2010 Census population count for Gainesville is 124,354. Gainesville is home to the sixth... , United States |
April 4, 2009 |
| 400 metres 400 metres The 400 metres, or 400 metre dash, is a common sprinting event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 . On a standard outdoor running track, it is exactly one lap around the track. Runners start in staggered positions and... |
50.39 | Athens Athens Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state... , Greece |
July 13, 2009 |
| 400 metres 400 metres The 400 metres, or 400 metre dash, is a common sprinting event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 . On a standard outdoor running track, it is exactly one lap around the track. Runners start in staggered positions and... (indoor) |
52.26 | Boston, Massachusetts, United States | February 25, 2007 |
| 500 metres (indoor) | 1:12.31 | University Park, Pennsylvania University Park, Pennsylvania University Park, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated community in Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States, and is the location of the flagship campus of the Pennsylvania State University.... , United States |
January 26, 2002 |
- All information taken from IAAF profile.
External links
- College career stats from Direct Athletics
- Video interview from Flotrack