Barbara Nwaba facts for kids
Barbara Nwaba at the 2016 IAAF World Indoor Championships
|
||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Barbara Udoezi Nwaba | |||||||||||||||||||
| Born | January 18, 1989 Los Angeles, California, United States |
|||||||||||||||||||
| Education | University of California, Santa Barbara (B.A. 2012) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation | Track and field athlete | |||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 9 in | |||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||
| College team | UC Santa Barbara Gauchos | |||||||||||||||||||
| Team | Santa Barbara Track Club | |||||||||||||||||||
| Coached by | Josh Priester | |||||||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | ||||||||||||||||||||
| World finals | 2016, 2015 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Olympic finals | 2016 | |||||||||||||||||||
|
Medal record
|
||||||||||||||||||||
| Updated on 02:41, 30 June 2015 (UTC). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Barbara Udoezi Nwaba, born on January 18, 1989, is an American athlete. She competes in track and field events. Barbara is famous for her skills in the pentathlon and heptathlon. These are events where athletes compete in many different sports. In 2015, she became the USA Outdoor Track and Field champion in the heptathlon. She represents the Santa Barbara Track Club.
Contents
About Barbara Nwaba
Early Life and School Days
Barbara Nwaba was born on January 18, 1989. Her birthplace was Los Angeles, California. Her parents, Theodore and Blessing Nwaba, are from Nigeria. Barbara is the oldest of their six children.
She went to University High School. She graduated in 2007. In 2007, she won the CIF Los Angeles City Section championship. This was for the 300 meters hurdles race. She also placed second four times in the high jump. She even went to the California State Meet for high jump.
College and Sports
Barbara attended the University of California, Santa Barbara. She went there to study optometry. But she ended up getting a degree in sociology in 2012.
While in college, she became a great athlete. She set school records in the 100 meters hurdles and 400 meters hurdles. She was also part of a record-setting 4x400 meters relay team. She was a top athlete in many heptathlon events. In 2012, she won the Big West Conference heptathlon. This earned her the title of All-American.
Barbara's brother, David Nwaba, is also a professional athlete. He plays basketball.
Barbara's Athletic Career
After college, Barbara continued her training. She joined the Santa Barbara Track Club. Her coach, Josh Priester, helped her improve a lot. He used to be a track and field coach at UCSB.
Olympic Trials and Championships
In 2012, Barbara competed in the Olympic Trials. She finished fifth in the heptathlon. She scored 5986 points.
In 2014, she competed in the Outdoor Championships. She finished second in the heptathlon. She scored 6307 points.
Barbara became the American Champion in 2015. She won the heptathlon with exactly 6500 points. This made her one of the best heptathlon performers in U.S. history.
World Championships and Olympic Games
At the 2015 World Championships, Barbara faced a challenge. She stumbled over a hurdle early in the competition. But she kept going and finished the heptathlon. She even set new personal bests in the javelin and shot put events.
In 2016, Barbara won the American Pentathlon Championship. This allowed her to represent the USA. She competed at the 2016 World Indoor Championships. There, she won a bronze medal in the pentathlon.
Barbara scored 6494 points in the heptathlon at the 2016 United States Olympic Trials. This earned her a spot on Team USA for the Olympics. She represented the USA at the 2016 Summer Olympics. She finished 12th, making her the top American athlete in the event.
