 Spencer at the 2010Hanžeković Memorial | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Jamaican |
| Born | (1987-05-06)6 May 1987 (age 37) |
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[1] |
| Weight | 75 kg (165 lb)[1] |
| Sport | |
| Country | Jamaica |
| Sport | Athletics |
| Event | 400 m hurdles |
Medal record | |
Kaliese Spencer Carter (born 6 May 1987) is a Jamaicantrack and field athlete who specialises in the400 metres hurdles. She won the bronze medal in the event at the2012 London Olympics. Spencer was theCommonwealth Games champion in 2014 and a double silver medallist at the2014 World Indoor Championships. She finished fourth at both the2009 and2011 World Championships in Athletics.
Spencer was the2006 World junior champion. She is a four-timeDiamond League 400 m hurdles winner.
Born in the parish ofWestmoreland, Jamaica, her mother, Merfelin Spencer was a 400 m runner in college and her father Joshua Spencer was amiddle-distance runner and she followed in their footsteps into the sport ofathletics.[2] She attended theUniversity of Technology in Jamaica and began focusing on her running under the tutelage of Stephen Francis as part of his Maximising Velocity and Power Track Club.[3] She had her firsthurdles success at the2006 World Junior Championships in Athletics, where she won the junior 400 m hurdles title with a personal best run of 55.11 seconds. Her debut at the senior level came the following year and she reached the semi-finals of her event at the2007 World Championships in Athletics inOsaka.[4]
Spencer made a strong start to the 2008 outdoor season by running a world-leading time in the400 metres at the Azuza Pacific Invitational, winning in a personal best time of 50.55 seconds.[3] However, she suffered a hip injury and only trained sporadically in the rest of the year, missing out on theJamaican Olympic team for the2008 Beijing Games as a result.[5]
She began competing in theIAAF Golden League in 2009, performing at theReebok Grand Prix,Golden Gala andHerculis meetings, although she failed to reach the podium on those occasions.[6] At the2009 World Championships, Spencer reached the final of the women's 400 m hurdles and finished fourth with a personal best run of 53.56 seconds – her club teammateMelaine Walker won the gold in a championship record.[7] She was also the substitute runner in the4 × 400 m relay at the championships and helped her team progress to the final where they won the silver medal. She took a victory over Walker shortly afterwards at theIAAF Zagreb Grand Prix.[8] Spencer ended her season by winning the silver medal at the2009 IAAF World Athletics Final, running 53.99 seconds to finish behind Walker.[4]
The2010 IAAF Diamond League became Spencer's principal target the following year and she was sixth at first meeting, theShanghai Golden Grand Prix in May.[6] She won at theMeeting International Mohammed VI d'Athlétisme de Rabat, defeatingPerri Shakes-Drayton,[9] and was third in the 400 m at the Jamaican Championships that month. She began making an impact on the Diamond League, finishing as runner-up behindLashinda Demus at thePrefontaine Classic and the Golden Gala, recording a personal best 53.48 s. She had her first win on the major circuit at theBritish Grand Prix.[10] She won at theHerculis meeting soon after and also set a meet record of 53.72 s at theSpitzenleichtathletik competition in Switzerland.[11]
The 24-year-old set a personal best in the 400 m hurdles of 52.79 s at the Aviva Grand Prix in Crystal Palace on 5 August 2011. As a result, Spencer was heavy favourite to win the gold medal at2011 World Championships in Athletics inDaegu,South Korea, where she finished fourth.
At the2012 London Olympics, Spencer initially narrowly missed out on a medal, finishing in fourth place in the 400 m hurdles. She was upgraded to the bronze medal in December 2022, following the stripping of gold medallistNatalya Antyukh of Russia.[12][13]
Spencer won the gold medal in her specialist event at the2014 Commonwealth Games held inGlasgow.[14]
All information taken fromWorld Athletics profile.
| Event | Time (sec) | Venue | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 200 metres | 23.11 | Rovereto, Italy | 3 September 2013 |
| 400 metres hurdles | 52.79 | Crystal Palace, London, United Kingdom | 5 August 2011 |
| 400 metres | 50.19 | Rieti, Italy | 8 September 2013 |
| 400 metres indoor | 51.54 | Sopot, Poland | 8 March 2014 |
| 800 metres | 2:03.01 | Kingston, Jamaica | 5 March 2011 |
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | CARIFTA Games (U-20) | Les Abymes, Guadeloupe | 2nd | 400 m | 51.99 |
| 1st | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:31.90CR | |||
| World Junior Championships | Beijing, China | 1st | 400 m hurdles | 55.11 | |
| 3rd | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:31.62 | |||
| 2007 | World Championships | Osaka, Japan | 8th (sf) | 400 m hurdles | 56.69 |
| 2009 | World Championships | Berlin, Germany | 4th | 400 m hurdles | 53.56 |
| 2nd | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:24.721 | |||
| World Athletics Final | Thessaloniki, Greece | 2nd | 400 m hurdles | 53.99 | |
| 2011 | World Championships | Daegu, South Korea | 4th | 400 m hurdles | 54.01 |
| 2012 | Olympic Games | London, United Kingdom | 3rd | 400 m hurdles | 53.66 |
| 2013 | World Championships | Moscow, Russia | – (h) | 400 m hurdles | DQ |
| – (h) | 4 × 400 m relay | DQ | |||
| 2014 | World Indoor Championships | Sopot, Poland | 2nd | 400 m | 51.54 |
| 2nd | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:26.54 | |||
| World Relays | Nassau, Bahamas | 2nd | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:23.26 | |
| Commonwealth Games | Glasgow, United Kingdom | 1st | 400 m hurdles | 54.10 | |
| 2015 | World Championships | Beijing, China | 8th | 400 m hurdles | 55.47 |
1Time from the heats; Spencer was replaced in the final.
2010,2011,2012,2014
