Melissa Breen facts for kids
Melissa Breen at "Mikio Oda Memorial", 2015, Hiroshima, Japan
|
|
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Australian |
| Born | 17 September 1990 Canberra, Australia |
| Residence | Canberra |
| Height | 1.74 m |
| Weight | 67 kg (2018) |
| Sport | |
| Country |  Australia |
| Sport | Track and field |
| Event(s) | 100 metres 200 metres |
| Club | Matt Beckenham |
Melissa Breen (born 17 September 1990) is a fast Australian runner. She competes in sprint races, mainly the 100 metres and 200 metres. Melissa made history on 9 February 2014 when she broke the Australian record for the women's 100-meter sprint. She ran it in an amazing 11.11 seconds! This happened in Canberra and broke a record that had stood for over 20 years.
Melissa has represented Australia at big events like the 2012 Summer Olympics. She has also won many Australian national championships in the 100m and 200m races. She competed for Australia at the 2010 Commonwealth Games, 2014 Commonwealth Games, and 2018 Commonwealth Games.
Contents
Growing Up and Training
Melissa Breen was born in the Australian Capital Territory on 17 September 1990. She went to school in Wanniassa and then to St Mary MacKillop College, Canberra for high school. After school, she studied at the Australian Vocational Training Academy. There, she learned skills that help her coach other athletes.
Melissa is 173 centimeters (about 5 feet 8 inches) tall. She lives and trains in Canberra, Australia.
Melissa's Running Career
Melissa is a specialist in 100m and 200m races. She is part of the Woden Harriers athletics club. Her coach is Matt Beckenham. She trains in Canberra and also in Cologne, Germany, when she's in Europe.
Her fastest time in the 100m race is 11.11 seconds, which she set in Canberra in 2014. For the 200m race, her best time is 23.12 seconds, set in Sydney in 2013.
Melissa has won the Australian national championships in the 100m event several times, including in 2010, 2012, 2015, and 2016. She also won the 200m national championship in 2009 and 2012. Even when she was younger, in the under-18 age group, she won the 100m in 2008 and the 200m in 2007.
Olympic Games and World Championships
Melissa was chosen to represent Australia at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. She competed in the 100m event. Even though she hadn't quite met the Olympic qualifying time, Athletics Australia selected her because she was improving quickly and was seen as a rising star. At the Olympics, she ran in her first-round heat for the 100 meters.
She also competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio. There, she finished 7th in her heat for the 100m race. Melissa has also represented Australia at the World Athletics Championships in 2011, 2013, and 2015.
Commonwealth Games Appearances
Melissa has proudly represented Australia at three Commonwealth Games.
2010 Commonwealth Games
She competed in the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, India, in the 100m event. She reached the semi-finals, finishing fifth in her race.
2014 Commonwealth Games
Melissa competed at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, UK. She ran in both the 100m race and the 4 × 100 metres relay. She reached the semi-finals in the 100m.
2018 Commonwealth Games
She was also selected for the 2018 Commonwealth Games held on the Gold Coast, Australia. Here, she competed in the 100m race and the 4 x 100m relay, reaching the semi-finals in the 100m.
Images for kids
-
Melissa Breen at "Mikio Oda Memorial", 2015, Hiroshima, Japan
