Sanya Richards-Ross

Who is Sanya Richards-Ross?

Sanya Richards-Ross is a Jamaican American track and field athlete who competes internationally for the United States. Richards-Ross won the Olympic gold medal in the 4×400 meters relay at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China and in the London 2012 Olympics. She won the individual bronze medal at the 2008 Olympics for the 400m. The following year, Richards-Ross became World Champion, winning a gold medal in the 400 meter race at the 2009 World Championships in Berlin. She won the gold medal in the 400m at the 2012 Olympics.

Richards-Ross started running at the age of 7. At St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale, she lettered in Track and Field and Basketball in high school and is a member of the National Honor Society, ending her high school academic career with a 4.0 grade point average. In 2002 she was named National High School Female Athlete of the Year, USA Track and Field's Youth Athlete of the Year, and Track and Field News Women's Prep Athlete of the Year. She became a naturalized American citizen in 2002.