Task 1: Sally Pearson - Background & Personal Details
Sally Pearson is the fifth fastest 100m hurdler in history and one of the best Australian Olympian. She was born in Paddington, Sydney on September 19th 1986 and moved to Queensland at the age of 8. When she was 12 years old, Sally was discovered by her now former coach Sharon Hannan at a Little Athletics Carnival in Townsville. As a junior, her breakthrough performance was at the 2001 Australian Championships where she won the U/20 100m with a personal best of 11.91 at the age of 14.
In Canada at the 2003 World Youth Championships, Pearson made her international debut where she won gold in the 100m hurdles. She made her first Australian senior team a month later, at the age of 16 and had a spot in the 4x100 relay team at the Paris World Championships. At the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games, Sally had a bad fall in the 100m hurdles final, but was able to return the following day and bring home a bronze medal for Australia in the 4x100m relay.
Pam Ryan held the Australian 100m hurdles record since 1972, and it was at the Brisbane 2007 National Championships where Pearson broke it by 0.1sec. She made the semi – final of both 100m and 100m hurdles later that year at the Osaka, Japan World Championships and ran a career best in the 100m opening heat being 11.14 sec.
In the lead up to the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, Pearson decided to focus on 100m hurdles and she was able to claim a silver medal. Just before the 2009 World Champions in Berlin, Pearson had a back injury, which impacted her performance, however, she was still able to finish fifth in the final. In Delhi, India, at the 2010 Commonwealth Games, she was disqualified in the 100m final but bounced back and won gold in the 100m hurdles. Throughout 2011 Sally became the most dominant hurdler in the world and was undefeated the whole season leading up to the World Athletics Championships in Daegu, South Korea, where she produced the performance of her life, winning gold in the 100m hurdles.
At the 2012 London Olympic Games, Pearson smashed the Olympic record and became the 10th female Australian track athlete to win a gold medal. In late February and early May of 2013, Pearson was hindered by two hamstring injuries but kept fighting to race herself into shape. At the Diamond League in London, she was able to win with a season best. Sally was in the best shape of the season when arriving in Moscow, she went through the rounds winning her heat and semi-final. In the final, Pearson had a great start but wasn’t able to sustain it for the last few hurdles, resulting in a silver medal, which was a great achievement considering her struggles at the start of the year.
In 2014 Sally was awarded the Order of Australia Medal for her contribution to sport as a Gold Medalist at the London Olympic Games.
In Canada at the 2003 World Youth Championships, Pearson made her international debut where she won gold in the 100m hurdles. She made her first Australian senior team a month later, at the age of 16 and had a spot in the 4x100 relay team at the Paris World Championships. At the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games, Sally had a bad fall in the 100m hurdles final, but was able to return the following day and bring home a bronze medal for Australia in the 4x100m relay.
Pam Ryan held the Australian 100m hurdles record since 1972, and it was at the Brisbane 2007 National Championships where Pearson broke it by 0.1sec. She made the semi – final of both 100m and 100m hurdles later that year at the Osaka, Japan World Championships and ran a career best in the 100m opening heat being 11.14 sec.
In the lead up to the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, Pearson decided to focus on 100m hurdles and she was able to claim a silver medal. Just before the 2009 World Champions in Berlin, Pearson had a back injury, which impacted her performance, however, she was still able to finish fifth in the final. In Delhi, India, at the 2010 Commonwealth Games, she was disqualified in the 100m final but bounced back and won gold in the 100m hurdles. Throughout 2011 Sally became the most dominant hurdler in the world and was undefeated the whole season leading up to the World Athletics Championships in Daegu, South Korea, where she produced the performance of her life, winning gold in the 100m hurdles.
At the 2012 London Olympic Games, Pearson smashed the Olympic record and became the 10th female Australian track athlete to win a gold medal. In late February and early May of 2013, Pearson was hindered by two hamstring injuries but kept fighting to race herself into shape. At the Diamond League in London, she was able to win with a season best. Sally was in the best shape of the season when arriving in Moscow, she went through the rounds winning her heat and semi-final. In the final, Pearson had a great start but wasn’t able to sustain it for the last few hurdles, resulting in a silver medal, which was a great achievement considering her struggles at the start of the year.
In 2014 Sally was awarded the Order of Australia Medal for her contribution to sport as a Gold Medalist at the London Olympic Games.