Michelle Jenneke facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Michelle Jenneke

Jenneke at the 2015 IAAF World Championships
Personal information
Nickname(s)	Shelly
Born	(1993-06-23) 23 June 1993 (age 32) Kenthurst, New South Wales, Australia
Height	172 cm
Sport
Country	Australia
Sport	Athletics
Event(s)	100 metres hurdles Sprint medley relay
Club	Sydney University Athletics Club
Team	Athletics Australia
Achievements and titles
World finals	2012 World Junior Championships: 100 m hurdles – 5th place
National finals	2016, 2023, 2024 Australian Championships: 100 m hurdles – 1st place
Olympic finals	2010 Summer Youth Olympics: 100 m hurdles – Silver Medley relay – 4th place
Personal best(s)	100 m hurdles 12.65 (Hengelo, Netherlands 2024)
Medal record Representing  Australia Summer Universiade Bronze 2015 Gwangju 100 m hurdles Youth Olympic Games Silver 2010 Singapore 100 m hurdles Oceania Youth Championships Gold 2010 Sydney 100 m hurdles Gold 2010 Sydney 4×100 m relay Bronze 2010 Sydney 100 m

Michelle Jenneke, also known as "Shelly", is an Australian athlete who is famous for being a hurdler and a model. She is a three-time Australian national champion in the 100 metres hurdles. In 2023, she became the second-fastest woman in Australian history to run the 100-meter hurdles, right after the famous hurdler Sally Pearson.

Jenneke won a silver medal at the 2010 Summer Youth Olympics. She also won the 100-meter hurdles at the 2016 Australian Athletics Championships, which earned her a spot at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.

In 2012, a video of her fun warm-up dance before a race went viral on the internet. This made her famous all over the world. She was even featured in the 2013 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.

Early Life and School

Michelle Jenneke was born on June 23, 1993, in Kenthurst, New South Wales, Australia. She went to The Hills Grammar School.

For college, she studied mechatronics at Sydney University. Mechatronics is a cool mix of mechanical engineering and electric engineering. When she's not on the track, Jenneke loves playing Australian rules football and soccer, quad biking, climbing trees, and playing handball.

Athletics Career

Starting Out

Jenneke started training as a hurdler when she was just 10 years old. She worked with coach Mick Zisti at the Cherrybrook Athletics Club.

In 2010, she had a big year. She won the 100-meter hurdles at the Australian Junior Championships. She also competed at the 2010 Summer Youth Olympics in Singapore. There, she won a silver medal in the 100-meter hurdles. This was the first athletics medal Australia won at those Games.

Becoming a Star

On July 15, 2012, Jenneke competed at the IAAF World Junior Championships. A video of her happy, bouncy warm-up dance before a race was posted online. It quickly went viral and made her an internet sensation.

Jenneke continued to compete at a high level. She was part of Australia's team for the 2014 Commonwealth Games, where she placed fifth in the final. She is the second-fastest 100-meter hurdle runner in Australian history.

Her personal best time is 12.66 seconds, which she set at the 2022 World Athletics Championships.

Olympic and World Championships

In 2016, Jenneke won the Australian National Championship. This victory qualified her for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Although she didn't make it past the first round of races, competing in the Olympics was a huge achievement.

She also competed in the 2017 World Championships in London, where she made it to the semi-finals. The BBC even included her famous warm-up dance in its final montage of the games' best moments. In 2018, she finished fourth at the Commonwealth Games.

Jenneke also competed in the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.

Media Attention

Michelle Jenneke at the 2012 World Junior Championships in Barcelona.

In July 2012, the videos of Jenneke's warm-up dance at the World Junior Championships in Barcelona became a huge hit on YouTube. One video got 19 million views in just one week. She was even featured on the American TV show The Tonight Show.

She also appeared in a funny video for the website The Chive called Forever Alone Meets Michelle Jenneke. In the video, she played herself and referenced her famous dance.

In 2013, she was featured in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. The next year, she was part of a mobile app about stretching called Stretch with Michelle Jenneke. She also raced a Nissan GT-R car for the TV show Top Gear during its Sydney Festival.

Athletic Achievements

International Competitions

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Event	Notes
Representing  Australia
2010	Oceania Youth Championships	Sydney, Australia	3rd	100 m	12.15 (+0.5 m/s)
			1st	100 m hurdles	14.12 (−1.4 m/s)
			1st	4 × 100 m relay	45.75
	Youth Olympic Games	Singapore	2nd	100 m hurdles	13.46
			4th	"Swedish medley" relay	2:13.96
2012	World Junior Championships	Barcelona, Spain	5th	100 m hurdles	13.54
2014	Commonwealth Games	Glasgow, United Kingdom	5th	100 m hurdles	13.36
2015	Universiade	Gwangju, South Korea	3rd	100 m hurdles	12.94
	World Championships	Beijing, China	18th (sf)	100 m hurdles	13.01
2016	World Indoor Championships	Portland, United States	10th (h)	60 m hurdles	8.10
	Olympic Games	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	37th (h)	100 m hurdles	13.26
2017	World Championships	London, United Kingdom	21st (sf)	100 m hurdles	13.25
	Universiade	Taipei, Taiwan	8th	100 m hurdles	14.82
2018	World Indoor Championships	Birmingham, United Kingdom	22nd (sf)	60 m hurdles	8.22
	Commonwealth Games	Gold Coast, Australia	4th	100 m hurdles	13.07
2022	World Championships	Eugene, United States	11th (sf)	100 m hurdles	12.66
2023	World Championships	Budapest, Hungary	14th (sf)	100 m hurdles	12.80
2024	World Indoor Championships	Glasgow, United Kingdom	16th (sf)	60 m hurdles	8.05
	Olympic Games	Paris, France	21st (rep)	100 m hurdles	13.86

National Championships

• 1st place (100 m hurdles) – 2010 Australian Junior Championships
• 1st place (4 × 100 m relay) – 2010 Australian Junior Championships (national record)
• Australian Championships - 100 m hurdles
  • 1st place – 2016, 2023, 2024
  • 2nd place – 2015, 2018, 2020
  • 3rd place – 2011, 2014, 2017, 2019, 2021, 2022

See also

In Spanish: Michelle Jenneke para niños