Alysia Montaño facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Alysia Montaño

Montaño at the 2010 World Indoor Championships in Athletics.
Personal information
Nationality	American
Born	(1986-04-23) April 23, 1986 (age 39) Queens, New York
Height	5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
Sport
Sport	Running
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)	400m: 52.09 800m: 1:57.34
Medal record Women's athletics Representing  United States World Championships Bronze 2011 Daegu 800 m Bronze 2013 Moscow 800 m World Indoor Championships Bronze 2010 Doha 800 m World Relay Championships Gold 2015 Nassau 4 × 800 m relay Pan American Games Gold 2015 Toronto 4 × 400 relay Silver 2015 Toronto 800 m

Alysia Montaño (born April 23, 1986) is a famous American middle-distance runner. She is well-known for winning the 800 meters race six times at the USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. She also gained a lot of attention when she competed in a race in 2014 while she was eight months pregnant.

Alysia Montaño's Running Journey

Early Life and High School Years

Alysia Johnson moved to California from New York when she was three years old. Growing up, she enjoyed playing soccer. She also ran cross country throughout her high school years. Alysia attended Canyon High School in Santa Clarita, California. Her high school running career ended with a big win. She won the 800 meters at the CIF California State Meet in 2004. That year, she was ranked among the top 10 high school runners in the nation.

College and First National Wins

Alysia continued to improve her running skills at the University of California, Berkeley. By 2006, she finished third at the NCAA Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championships. She set new personal best times three times during that competition. In 2007, she became a national star. She won both the NCAA Indoor Championship and the Outdoor Championship. She also ran the 800 meters in under two minutes for the first time.

At the 2007 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, Alysia won her first national title. She finished the 800 meters in 1 minute, 59.47 seconds. Later that year, at the 2007 World Athletics Championships, she was eliminated in the early rounds of the 800 meters.

International Success and Olympic Dreams

In 2010, Alysia won her first international medal. It was a bronze medal in the 800 meters at the 2010 IAAF World Indoor Championships. She set a personal best time of 1 minute, 59.60 seconds. In 2011, she won the 800 meters title again at the 2011 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. This was her second win in a row. At the World Championships in Daegu, she initially placed fourth. However, because some Russian competitors were later disqualified, she moved up to win a bronze medal.

Alysia came very close to setting a new personal best at the 2012 Prefontaine Classic. She won the 800 meters race in 1 minute, 57.37 seconds. At the 2012 Olympics, Alysia led the race for a long time. But other runners passed her near the end, and she finished fifth. Later, two Russian athletes were disqualified for doping. This meant Alysia was awarded an Olympic bronze medal.

In 2013, she won the Milrose Games 600 meters race. She also set an American Indoor Record of 1 minute, 23.59 seconds. She then helped her team set an American Outdoor Record in the 4 × 800 meters relay at the Penn Relays. At the 2013 World Championships, Alysia again finished fourth after leading the race. Another Russian athlete, Mariya Savinova, finished ahead of her. When Savinova was banned from the sport for doping, Alysia received another bronze medal.

In 2015, Alysia Montaño earned a silver medal in the 800 meters at the Athletics at the 2015 Pan American Games – Women's 800 metres. The day before, she helped her team win a gold medal in the 4 × 400 meters relay at the same event. Unfortunately, Alysia did not qualify for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics. She fell during the USA Olympic trial finals.

Racing While Pregnant

Alysia Montaño gained a lot of attention in June 2014. She competed in the USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships while she was eight months pregnant. She finished the 800 meters preliminaries with a time of 2 minutes, 32.13 seconds. She gave birth to her daughter, Linnea Dori Montaño, on August 15, 2014. Just one year later, in June 2015, Alysia returned to racing. She won the 800 meters final at the US Trials. This allowed her to qualify for the World Athletics Championships in Beijing.

Major Competition Record

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Event	Notes
Representing  United States
2006	NACAC U23 Championships	Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic	1st	800 m	2:03.87
2007	Pan American Games	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	6th	800 m	2:02.57
	World Championships	Osaka, Japan	29th (h)	800 m	2:02.11
2010	World Indoor Championships	Doha, Qatar	3rd	800 m	1:59.60
2011	World Championships	Daegu, South Korea	3rd	800 m	1:57.48
2012	Olympic Games	London, United Kingdom	3rd	800 m	1:57.93
2013	World Championships	Moscow, Russia	3rd	800 m	1:57.95
2015	World Relay Championships	Nassau, Bahamas	1st	4 × 800 m relay	8:00.62 (AR)
	Pan American Games	Toronto, Ontario	1st	4 × 400 m relay	3:26.40 semifinal
	World Championships	Beijing, China	41st (h)	800 m	2:09.57

Personal Bests

See also

In Spanish: Alysia Montaño para niños