 Castlin in 2014 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1988-07-07)July 7, 1988 (age 37) |
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)[1] |
| Weight | 133 lb (60 kg)[1] |
| Sport | |
| Club | HSInternational Sports Management |
| Team | Nike |
Medal record | |
Kristi Castlin (born July 7, 1988) is an Americantrack and field athlete who specializes in the100 metres hurdles. She won a bronze medal at the 2016 Olympics. Her personal best for the event is 12.50 seconds, set on July 8, 2016, during the finals of the2016 United States Olympic Trials, in which she qualified for the2016 Summer Olympics by placing 2nd. She was the 2012 American champion in the indoor60 metres hurdles and represented the United States at the2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships. She shares theworld record for theshuttle hurdle relay, with her time of 50.78 seconds set in 2013.
She competed collegiately for theVirginia Tech Hokies and had seven All-America finishes in the NCAA championships. These accomplishments earned her a place in theVirginia Tech sports hall of fame.
She was a gold medalist at thePan American Junior Athletics Championships in 2007 and a silver medalist at theNACAC Under-23 Championships in Athletics in 2008.
During the 2016 Summer Olympics, Castlin wore a traditionalHindubindi.[2] Castlin won a bronze medal in thewomen's 100 metres hurdles, completing thesweep of the event along with two of her USA teammates,Brianna Rollins andNia Ali, who won gold and silver medals respectively. It was the only sweep in the 2016 Olympic Athletics program.
Castlin was born inAtlanta, Georgia, to Kimberly and Rodney Castlin. She did not take up track and field until the age of fourteen, only becoming interested when she noticed she was quicker than her classmates. While still in high school, she ran a Georgia state record time of 13.73 seconds for the100 metres hurdles.[3] She graduated in the top five percent of her class, and given her athletic ability, she gained a scholarship to studypolitical science atVirginia Tech. She graduated from Virginia Tech in 2010.[4]
In her first indoor season competing collegiately for theVirginia Tech Hokies, Castlin broke the school records in both the60 metres hurdles (8.20 seconds) and55 metres hurdles (7.61 seconds). She receivedAll-American honors for her ninth-place finish at the 2007NCAA Indoor Championships and was the runner-up at theAtlantic Coast Conference (ACC) indoor meet. Outdoors, she broke theAmerican junior (under-20) record for the 100 metres hurdles, running a time of 12.91 seconds. She won the ACC Outdoor Championships title and placed ninth at theNCAA Outdoor Championships. After a win at theUSA Junior Outdoor Track and Field Championships,[3] Castlin made her international debut at the2007 Pan American Junior Athletics Championships and came away with the gold medal and a 100 metres hurdles championship record of 13.02 seconds, beating her compatriotQueen Harrison.[5][6]
Castlin continued to improve in the 2008 season. She again broke two school records in indoor hurdles and was runner-up toTiffany Ofili at the 2008 NCAA Indoor Championships.[7] She was also runner-up in the 60 metres hurdles at the ACC Indoor Championships. Outdoors, she won the ACC 100 metres hurdles title and ran a personal record time of 12.81 seconds for the season.[3] With that time, she was ranked 25th in the world that year.[8] She was a semi-finalist at the2008 United States Olympic Trials and claimed her second international medal, a silver behind Ofili, at the2008 NACAC Under-23 Championships in Athletics.[3]
Her third collegiate season saw her win the ACC hurdles titles both indoors and outdoors. At the 2009 NCAA Outdoor Championships she was again runner-up in the 100 m hurdles behindMichigan Wolverines' Tiffany Ofili.[9] Ofili was also victorious at the NCAA Indoor Championships, with Castlin taking third place on that occasion.[10] In her final year in 2010 she was runner-up at the NCAA Indoor Championships behind Queen Harrison,[11] She was knocked out of the top three at the NCAA Outdoor competition – her last NCAA event – and took fourth place behindAleesha Barber.[12]
Castlin closed her career with the Hokies having won four ACC titles, broken the conference record for the 100 m hurdles and taken eight All-American honors from NCAA competition.
Castlin turned professional after leaving Virginia Tech, gaining an Adidas sponsorship, and set a season's best of 12.83 seconds at the2011 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. However, she false started in the semi-finals and was disqualified.[13] She secured her first national title at the2012 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships, setting a personal record of 7.84 seconds in the process.[14] The time ultimately ranked as the second fastest in the world that year for the 60 m hurdles.[15] This gained her selection for the2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships – her first senior appearance. In spite of her entering the competition as one of the favourites, she failed to finish her heat as she mistook the sound of thestarter's pistol for a recall (due to the echo in the hall) and stopped running before the first hurdle.[16]
At the2012 United States Olympic Trials she reached the semi-finals, but her time of 12.93 seconds was not enough to progress.[17] She performed well, however, on the2012 IAAF Diamond League circuit that year. She greatly improved her personal record to 12.56 seconds as runner-up at theBislett Games inOslo – a time which ranked her sixth in the world for 2012. Her other major placings included fourth at both theMeeting Areva in Paris and theLondon Grand Prix.[18]
Castlin tried to defend her national title at the2013 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships, but was beaten into second place byNia Ali.[19] At the2013 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships she had her best national placing yet, taking sixth in a time of 12.61 seconds (her fastest that year).[20] She ranked tenth globally for the season.[21] Her 2013 was highlighted by aworld record in the infrequently contestedshuttle hurdle relay – at theFlorida Relays a team of Ali, Castlin,Yvette Lewis and Queen Harrison completed the 4×100 m relay event in a new best time of 50.78 seconds.[22]
She ranked in the top three at the2014 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships, doing so at the national event for the third year running.[23] She was selected at theUSA Track & Field athlete of the week at the end of April 2014 as a result of her breakingBrianna Rollins' streak of 35 races without defeat; Castlin's run of 12.571 seconds edged Rollins by five thousandths of a second and broke theDrake Relays meet record.[24][25] This proved to be her fastest of the season and enough to place her seventh in the annual global rankings.[26] She defeated both Rollins (the world champion) andSally Pearson (the Olympic champion) at theSpitzen Leichtathletik Luzern in July.[27] She ended the year with a win in the non-Diamond League 100 m hurdles at theMemorial Van Damme meet in Brussels.[28]
During the2016 United States Olympic Trials for track and field, Castlin placed second in the 100 m hurdles with a time of 12.50 seconds, behindBrianna Rollins and ahead ofNia Ali, and qualified to represent the United States at the2016 Summer Olympics in Brazil.[29]
She earned a bronze medal at the Rio Olympics in the 100 m hurdles, with a time of 12.61 seconds, outleaning Cindy Ofili at the finish. Castlin finished behind American teammates Brianna Rollins, who earned the gold medal with a time of 12.48 seconds, and Nia Ali, who earned the silver medal with a time of 12.59 seconds. It was the first time in Olympic history that American women had swept the medals in any event, and made the United States the first country to win gold, silver, and bronze in the women's 100 m hurdles in one Olympics.[30] HSInternational Sports Management announced its signing of Kristi "Hollywood" Castlin, theRio Olympic Bronze Medalist at 100 m Hurdles.[31]
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Pan American Junior Championships | São Paulo, Brazil | 1st | 100 m hurdles | 13.02CR |
| 2008 | NACAC U23 Championships | Toluca, Mexico | 2nd | 100 m hurdles | 13.21 |
| 2012 | World Indoor Championships | Istanbul, Turkey | — (h) | 60 m hurdles | DNF |
| 2016 | Olympic Games | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | 3rd | 100 m hurdles | 12.61 |
| 2017 | DécaNation | Angers, France | 1st | 100 m hurdles | 12.95 |
