Sheila Hudson facts for kids

Dr. Sheila Ann Hudson, born on June 30, 1967, is an American athlete who used to compete in track and field. She is also an Olympian! Sheila is known as one of the best U.S. athletes ever in the women's triple jump event.

During her amazing career, she won nine U.S. triple jump titles. She also set two world records and nine American records in the triple jump. These world records were set before the event was officially recognized by the main international sports group.

Sheila held the American record for the indoor triple jump (46 feet, 8.25 inches) and the outdoor triple jump (47 feet, 3.5 inches). Her best jump ever was 48 feet, 1.25 inches, with a little help from the wind.

She won a silver medal at the 1994 IAAF World Cup. She also placed eighth at the 1995 World Indoor Championships. Sheila finished tenth at the 1996 Olympic Games and fifth at the 1998 IAAF World Cup.

Sheila Hudson was a very important person in helping to make the triple jump an Olympic event for women. She represented the United States at the first-ever women's triple jump competition at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, where she placed tenth.

After her sports career, Sheila earned a special degree called a doctorate in Educational Leadership. She has worked as a writer for the Sacramento Bee newspaper. She also coached college athletes and helped manage sports programs at universities.

Sheila is still active today, helping women and girls succeed in sports and stand up for their rights. She is part of groups that support women in sports and education. She also helped make decisions for important sports organizations like USA Track & Field (USATF).

Early Life and High School

Sheila Hudson was born in Würzburg, Germany. She grew up in Rio Linda, California, and went to Rio Linda High School. There, she played on the girls' basketball team as the starting point guard for all four years.

On the track team, Sheila competed in many events. These included the triple jump, long jump, 300-meter hurdles, and relay races. In her senior year, 1985, she won the California State Meet title in the triple jump. After high school, she received a full scholarship to join the track team at UC Berkeley.

College Years at UC Berkeley

Sheila attended the University of California at Berkeley. She earned a bachelor's degree in architecture in 1990. She also considered Stanford University but chose Cal. She liked Cal because it was known for its open-minded ideas and for people who worked for social change.

College Track and Field Success

Sheila competed for the Cal track and field team from 1986 to 1990. During her time there, she was named an All-American nine times. She won six NCAA Division I National Championships. Four of these were in the triple jump, and two were in the long jump.

She still holds the school records for the triple jump (46 feet, 0.75 inches) and the long jump (22 feet, 1 inch). Sheila was even voted Cal's Pac-10 Athlete of the Decade for track and field, covering the years 1986 to 1996.

Sheila's College Achievements

After College: Professional Career

Helping the Women's Triple Jump Become Olympic

Sheila Hudson spent many years working hard to get the women's triple jump included in the Olympic Games. After a lot of effort and talking to many people, the International Olympic Committee added the event. It was first included in the 1996 Olympic Games. Sheila placed 10th for the United States in this first-ever women's triple jump competition in Atlanta.

National and International Competitions

In U.S. Championship competitions, Sheila was a four-time USA Outdoor triple jump champion. She won in 1989, 1990, 1994, and 1995. She was also a five-time USA Indoor triple jump champion, winning in 1990, 1993, 1994, 1995, and 1996.

Sheila held the Indoor American triple jump record (46 feet, 8.25 inches) for twenty-three years, until 2017. She also set and broke her own Outdoor American triple jump record many times between 1987 and 1995. She held this record for seventeen years until it was broken in 2004.

On the international stage, Sheila won a silver medal at the 1994 IAAF World Cup. She also won a bronze medal at the 1993 Goodwill Games. She finished eighth at the 1995 World Indoor Championships. She was tenth at the 1996 Olympic Games and fifth at the 1998 IAAF World Cup.

USA National Championships Results

Awards and Recognition

Sheila Hudson has received many honors for her achievements.

• She was named to the Pac-12 All-Century Team for track and field in 2016.
• She was the Pac-10 Athlete of the Decade for track and field (1986–96).
• She was nominated for the Honda Sports Award in 1989–90.
• She was part of the Pac-12 Silver Anniversary Team for track and field in 2006.
• UC Berkeley inducted her into their Hall of Fame in 1999.
• The CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Hall of Fame welcomed her in 2014.
• She was one of the first people inducted into the Rio Linda High School Sports Hall of Fame in 2022.

After Competing: New Careers

Sports Journalism

After her professional track and field career ended, Sheila Hudson started working for the Sacramento Bee newspaper in her hometown. She began by writing a diary about her Olympic hopes. Later, from 2000 to 2002, she wrote feature articles as a staff writer in the sports section.

Coaching Career

Sheila served as an assistant track and field coach at her old university, UC Berkeley, from 1992 to 1994. Later, she was an assistant track coach at California State University, Los Angeles, from 2002 to 2008. Sheila's coaching helped Cal State LA's jumpers achieve great things:

• One NCAA Division II individual National Champion in the triple jump.
• Four NCAA Division II National Championship Runners Up in triple jump, long jump, and high jump.
• Eighteen NCAA Division II All-Americans.
• Twelve CCAA individual Conference Champions.
• Thirty-six CCAA individual All-Conference Honorees.

Athletics Administration

In 2008, while at Cal State LA, Sheila moved from coaching to managing sports programs. She worked as the Compliance Coordinator and Senior Woman Administrator for two years. Then, in 2008, she was promoted to Associate Athletics Director. In January 2016, she became the Senior Associate Director of Athletics. At the same time, she also helped with Title IX, which ensures fairness in sports. Sheila left Cal State LA in 2017.

Education

Sheila Hudson was the first person in her family to go to a university. She earned her bachelor's degree in architecture from UC Berkeley in 1990. While working full-time in sports administration, Sheila continued her studies at Cal State LA. She earned a master's degree in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. She also earned a Doctorate in Educational Leadership.

External links

• Sheila Hudson at World AthleticsLua error in Module:EditAtWikidata at line 29: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).