Kerron Clement facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Kerron Clement

Clement at the 2016 Summer Olympics
Personal information
Full name	Kerron Stephon Clement
Nationality	Trinidadian-American
Born	(1985-10-31) October 31, 1985 (age 39) Port of Spain, Trinidad
Height	6ft 2in
Weight	185 lb
Sport
Sport	Track and field
Event(s)	400 meters, 400 meters hurdles
College team	University of Florida
Medal record Men's athletics Representing the  United States Olympic Games Gold 2008 Beijing 4 × 400 m relay Gold 2016 Rio de Janeiro 400 m hurdles Silver 2008 Beijing 400 m hurdles World Championships Gold 2007 Osaka 400 m hurdles Gold 2007 Osaka 4 × 400 m relay Gold 2009 Berlin 400 m hurdles Gold 2009 Berlin 4 × 400 m relay Bronze 2017 London 400 m hurdles

Kerron Stephon Clement (born October 31, 1985) is a Trinidadian-born American track and field athlete. He is a specialist in the 400-meter hurdles and the 400-meter sprint. For a time, he held the indoor world record in the 400-meter sprint. He broke the record in 2005, which was previously held by the famous athlete Michael Johnson.

Clement has won many medals in his career. He won a gold medal in the 400-meter hurdles at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. He also won a silver medal in the same event at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

He has been very successful at the World Championships, winning the hurdles title in both 2007 and 2009. Clement was also a key member of the American 4 × 400-meter relay team. With this team, he won two world championships and an Olympic gold medal.

Athletic Career

Clement at the 2007 World Championships

Clement was born in Port of Spain, the capital city of Trinidad and Tobago. In 1998, his family moved to the United States. He went to La Porte High School in La Porte, Texas, where he became a star athlete. He was a champion in both the 110-meter and 400-meter hurdles.

College Success

After high school, Clement received a scholarship to the University of Florida. There, he competed for the Florida Gators track team from 2004 to 2005. The team was part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), which organizes sports for colleges across the U.S.

In his first year, he won the NCAA outdoor championship in the 400-meter hurdles. He won this title again in 2005. In June 2004, Clement became a U.S. citizen. This meant he could try to join the U.S. Olympic team. However, he chose to compete in the 2004 World Junior Championships in Athletics instead.

At the World Junior Championships, he won a gold medal in the 400-meter hurdles. He set a new championship record with a time of 48.51 seconds. He also helped the American 4 × 400-meter relay team set a new world junior record.

On March 12, 2005, Clement did something amazing. At the NCAA indoor championships, he broke the world record for the 400-meter indoor sprint. His time was 44.57 seconds, beating the old record set by Michael Johnson.

Professional Career

Clement at the 2010 Bislett Games

In the summer of 2005, Clement decided to become a professional athlete. He won the 400-meter hurdles at the U.S. championships with a time of 47.24 seconds. This was the fastest time in the world that year. Later that year, he competed in the 2005 World Championships and finished in fourth place.

World and Olympic Champion

In 2007, Clement won a gold medal in the 400-meter hurdles at the World Championships in Osaka, Japan. His winning time was 47.61 seconds. This made him the number one 400-meter hurdler in the world.

At the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, Clement was a favorite to win gold. He finished in second place, winning a silver medal behind his American teammate Angelo Taylor. He also won a gold medal as part of the 4 × 400-meter relay team, even though he didn't run in the final race.

The next year, at the 2009 World Championships, Clement won the gold medal again. He ran his best time of the season, 47.91 seconds, to become a two-time world champion.

Later Career

Clement had some challenges in the following years. In 2011, he started the season well but couldn't improve his times. He automatically qualified for the World Championships as the defending champion but did not make it to the finals.

However, Clement made a strong comeback. He qualified for the 2015 World Championships in Athletics by finishing third at the U.S. championships. His greatest later success came at the 2016 Summer Olympics, where he finally won the Olympic gold medal in the 400-meter hurdles. The next year, he won a bronze medal at the 2017 World Championships.

Personal Bests

This table shows Kerron Clement's best times in different track events.

• All information from IAAF profile. Last updated October 15, 2008

See also

In Spanish: Kerron Clement para niños

• Florida Gators
• List of Olympic medalists in athletics (men)
• List of University of Florida alumni
• List of University of Florida Olympians