Sally Pearson facts for kids
Sally Pearson in 2015
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| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Australian |
| Born | 19 September 1986 Sydney, Australia |
| Height | 1.67 m |
| Weight | 60 kg |
| Sport | |
| Country |  Australia |
| Sport | Track and field |
| Event(s) | 100 metres sprint, 200 metre sprint, 100 metres hurdles and 200 metre hurdles |
| Coached by | Sharon Hannan and Peter Hannan; Self-coached |
| Retired | 5 August 2019 |
| Achievements and titles | |
| Olympic finals | 100 m hurdles and 100 metre sprints |
Sally Pearson (born 19 September 1986) is a retired Australian track and field athlete. She is one of the fastest female hurdlers in sports history.
She won the gold medal in the 100 metres hurdles at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. She also won two World Championships in the same event in 2011 and 2017.
Pearson is well known for her speed, determination, and ability to overcome serious athletic injuries. During her running career, she set several continental and national records.
Contents
Early Life and Athletic Discovery
Sally Pearson was born as Sally McLellan in Sydney, Australia. When she was eight years old, her family moved to Birdsville in Queensland. Later, they settled on the sunny Gold Coast.
Pearson showed an early natural talent for running during primary school sports days. A track coach named Sharon Hannan spotted her athletic potential and offered to train her.
Hannan coached Pearson for more than a decade. Under Hannan's guidance, Pearson learned proper sprinting mechanics and hurdle clearance techniques.
Her mother, Anne, worked two jobs to pay for running shoes, coaching, and travel. Pearson often credited her mother's hard work for teaching her focus and discipline.
Junior Career and Rise to Fame
Pearson quickly made a name for herself in Australian youth athletics. In 2001, at only 14 years old, she won national junior titles in sprinting and hurdles.
She competed at the 2003 World Youth Championships in Athletics in Sherbrooke, Canada. There, she won her first major international gold medal in the 100-metre hurdles.
Only a month later, at age 16, she joined the senior Australian team at the World Championships in Paris. She ran as part of the women's 4 × 100 metres relay team.
In 2004, she earned a bronze medal in the 100-metre flat sprint at the World Junior Championships in Italy. Her coaches realized she had the rare ability to excel in both flat sprints and obstacle races.
Senior International Running Career
Early Senior Competitions
Pearson competed at the 2006 Commonwealth Games held in Melbourne, Australia. During the hurdle final, she hit an obstacle and fell, missing a podium spot.
However, she bounced back quickly in the relay. She helped Australia take home a bronze medal in the 4 × 100-metre event.
By 2007, Pearson was racing against the fastest women in the world. She reached the semi-finals in both the flat sprint and hurdle events at the World Championships in Osaka, Japan.
2008 Beijing Olympic Silver Medal
Before the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, Pearson decided to focus entirely on the hurdles. That decision led to one of the biggest moments of her early career.
The Olympic final was very close and full of drama. Race favourite Lolo Jones stumbled over the ninth hurdle, opening the race for other runners.
Pearson crossed the finish line in a tight group. The judges needed a slow-motion photo finish camera to determine the medal winners.
When the scoreboard showed Pearson in second place with silver, she reacted with famous joy. Her time was 12.64 seconds, earning Australia's first Olympic hurdle medal in four decades.
Road to the 2011 World Title
In 2009, Pearson set new Australian and Oceanian records in Europe by running 12.50 seconds. However, painful back spasms held her back at that year's World Championships in Berlin.
The 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi brought unusual challenges. She won the 100-metre sprint final, but was later disqualified due to an earlier false start ruling.
Pearson showed mental strength by returning three days later to win gold easily in the 100-metre hurdles. She also stepped in to run the longer 4 × 400-metre relay for her country.
In 2011, Pearson achieved one of the most dominant hurdle seasons ever recorded. She won almost every single race she entered across the globe.
At the 2011 World Championships in Daegu, South Korea, Pearson ran the race of her life. She finished in 12.28 seconds to win the gold medal.
This performance made her the fourth-fastest woman in history in the event. She was named the IAAF Female World Athlete of the Year for 2011.
2012 London Olympic Gold Medal
Pearson entered the 2012 Summer Olympics in London as the top favourite. She had won 32 of her previous 34 races.
Despite cold weather and heavy rain on race night, Pearson remained calm and focused. She exploded out of the starting blocks with great reaction speed.
She crossed the line in 12.35 seconds, setting a brand new Olympic record. She won the gold medal ahead of American hurdlers Dawn Harper and Kellie Wells.
Her Olympic record time demonstrated near-flawless hurdle technique under intense competitive pressure.
Injuries, Recovery, and the 2017 Comeback
Track and field hurdles place intense stress on the human body. Between 2013 and 2016, Pearson battled several serious sports injuries.
At a 2015 race in Italy, she fell hard over a hurdle and broke her left wrist. The complex bone fracture required surgery and months of careful physical therapy.
In 2016, while training hard to defend her Olympic title, she suffered a torn hamstring. The muscle tear forced her to miss the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Instead of giving up, Pearson took control of her own training program. She became her own coach and adjusted her workouts to stay healthy.
At the 2017 World Championships in London, Pearson completed an inspiring sports comeback. She won her second World Championship gold medal with a time of 12.59 seconds.
Running Style and Hurdle Technique
Hurdling is not simply jumping over barriers; it is sprinting through them without losing forward speed. Pearson is famous for having one of the cleanest hurdle techniques ever filmed.
The Seven-Step Approach
Most hurdlers take eight strides from the starting blocks to the first hurdle. Pearson trained herself to reach top speed quickly using a powerful seven-stride approach.
Fewer steps allowed her to attack the first hurdle with greater velocity. This gave her an early lead in many championship races.
Lead Leg and Trail Leg Action
Pearson snapped her lead leg straight over the barrier quickly. At the same time, she tucked her trailing leg flat to stay low to the hurdle.
Staying low kept her center of gravity stable. This meant she spent less time floating in the air and more time running on the ground.
Retirement and Life After Track
In August 2019, Pearson announced her retirement from professional athletics. Constant injuries to her Achilles tendons and hamstrings made top-level training difficult.
During her retirement speech, she expressed pride in her 16-year international career. She noted that her body had reached its limit for elite sprinting.
After retiring from competitive sports, Pearson moved into television and sports media. She worked as a sports news presenter and morning reporter in Australia.
She also appeared as a celebrity contestant on the popular television program Dancing with the Stars. Pearson continues to visit schools and youth sports clubs to inspire young athletes.
Major Athletic Achievements and Honors
Major International Competitions
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Representing Australia |
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| 2003 | World Youth Championships | Sherbrooke, Canada | 1st | 100 m hurdles | 13.42 |
| World Championships | Paris, France | 14th (heats) | 4 × 100 m relay | 44.11 | |
| 2004 | World Junior Championships | Grosseto, Italy | 3rd | 100 m | 11.40 |
| 4th | 100 m hurdles | 13.41 | |||
| 2006 | Commonwealth Games | Melbourne, Australia | 7th | 100 m | 11.50 |
| 3rd | 4 × 100 m relay | 44.25 | |||
| 2008 | Olympic Games | Beijing, China | 2nd | 100 m hurdles | 12.64 |
| 2010 | IAAF Continental Cup | Split, Croatia | 1st | 100 m hurdles | 12.65 |
| Commonwealth Games | Delhi, India | 1st | 100 m hurdles | 12.67 | |
| 2011 | World Championships | Daegu, South Korea | 1st | 100 m hurdles | 12.28 |
| 2012 | World Indoor Championships | Istanbul, Turkey | 1st | 60 m hurdles | 7.73 |
| Olympic Games | London, United Kingdom | 1st | 100 m hurdles | 12.35 | |
| 2013 | World Championships | Moscow, Russia | 2nd | 100 m hurdles | 12.50 |
| 2014 | World Indoor Championships | Sopot, Poland | 2nd | 60 m hurdles | 7.85 |
| Commonwealth Games | Glasgow, Scotland | 1st | 100 m hurdles | 12.67 | |
| 2017 | World Championships | London, United Kingdom | 1st | 100 m hurdles | 12.59 |
Personal Best Times
- 100 metres sprint: 11.14 seconds (2007)
- 200 metres sprint: 22.97 seconds (2015)
- 100 metres hurdles: 12.28 seconds (2011) – Oceanian record
- 60 metres hurdles (indoor): 7.73 seconds (2012) – Australian record
Awards and Recognition
- 2011: IAAF Female World Athlete of the Year
- 2012: Sport Australia Hall of Fame "The Don Award"
- 2014: Awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM)
- 2017: Australian Institute of Sport Female Athlete of the Year
- 2024: Inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame
Personal Life
Pearson attended Helensvale State High School on the Gold Coast. It was there that she met Kieran Pearson.
The two married in April 2010 on the Gold Coast. They have supported each other through her athletic career and into family life.
See also
In Spanish: Sally Pearson para niños
