Tyson Gay

Tyson Gay
Personal information
Born (1982-08-09) August 9, 1982 (age 42)[1]
Lexington, Kentucky, U.S.[1]
Home townClermont, Florida, U.S.
Alma materUniversity of Arkansas
Height5 ft 11 in (1.81 m)[2]
Weight176 lb (80 kg)[2]
Sport
CountryUnited States
SportTrack and field
Event(s)100 m, 200 m, 4×100 m relay
Coached byJohn Smith
Achievements and titles
Personal bests
Medal record

Tyson Gay (born August 9, 1982) is a retired American track and field sprinter who competed in the 100 and 200 meters. His 100 m personal best of 9.69 seconds is the American record and makes him tied for the second fastest athlete over 100 m ever, along with Yohan Blake of Jamaica.

Gay has won medals in many major international competitions, which includes 3 gold medals in the 100 m, 200 m and 4 × 100 m relay at the 2007 Osaka World Championships. This made him the second man to win all three events at the same World Championships, after Maurice Greene (Usain Bolt duplicated the feat two years later). Gay is a four-time U.S. champion in the 100 m.

At the 2008 Olympic Trials, he ran a wind assisted 9.68 seconds in the 100 m.[3][4] Days later, he suffered a severe hamstring injury in the 200 m trials and did not win any medals at the Beijing Olympics. He clocked 9.71 seconds to win the 100 m silver medal in the 2009 World Championships — it is the fastest non-winning time in the history of the 100 m.

In July 2013, it was announced that Gay had tested positive for a banned substance; he subsequently withdrew from consideration for the World Championships in Moscow. The United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) suspended him until June 23, 2014, and stripped him of his silver medal in the 4 × 100 m relay at the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Gay is a two-time winner of the Jesse Owens Award, was the 2007 IAAF World Athlete of the Year, won Best Track and Field Athlete for Track & Field News in 2007 and for ESPY Award in 2008 and 2011. He has also achieved multiple Men's season's best performances in the 100 m and 200 m.

  1. ^ a b "Tyson Gay". teamusa.org. USOC. Archived from the original on July 2, 2015. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  2. ^ a b Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Tyson Gay". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on August 25, 2019. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
  3. ^ Patrick, Dick (June 29, 2008). "Gay wins trials 100 with wind-aided 9.68". USA Today. Retrieved August 20, 2012.
  4. ^ 0 Toplists 100 m – o. iaaf.org. Retrieved on 2011-05-30.