Morgan Mitchell (born 3 October 1994) is an Australian athlete who specialized in the 400 metres and now competes in the 800 metres.[2]

Morgan Mitchell
Morgan Mitchell in 2014
Personal information
Born (1994-10-03) 3 October 1994 (age 30)
Carlton, Victoria, Australia[1]
Sport
SportAthletics
Event(s)400 metres, 800 metres

Early life

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Mitchell started athletics in 2000, inspired by the success of compatriot Cathy Freeman at the Sydney Olympics, but stopped at the age of 12 to concentrate on netball. She represented Australia on junior level before returning to athletics in 2012.[3]

Mitchell's father is an African American former professional basketball player who moved from the United States to Australia, and her mother is Australian.[4][5]

Career

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Mitchell competed in the 4 × 400 metres relay event at the 2015 World Championships in Beijing without advancing to the final. She represented Australia in the Women's 400m and Women's 4 × 400 m Relay at the 2016 Summer Olympics.[6] Her personal best in the 400 metres is 51.25 seconds set in Birmingham in 2016.

In 2019, Mitchell switched focus to the 800 metres, rapidly improving to her current personal best of 2:00.06.[7]

As part of her switch in event, Elizabeth Mathews became her coach and Mitchell began running 60–70 km a week rather than the 15 km per week she had done for sprinting previously.[8]

Mitchell competed in the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. She came sixth in her Women's 800m heat with a time of 2:05.44 and was therefore eliminated.[9]

Mitchell took part in the 2024 Summer Olympics. She was named F45's Global Athlete for Australia.[10] She has been vegan for over a decade and attributes much of her success to her vegan diet.

International competitions

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Year Competition Venue Position Event Notes
Representing   Australia
2012 World Junior Championships Barcelona, Spain 13th (sf) 400 m 53.88
8th 4 × 400 m relay 3:38.84
2014 World Relays Nassau, Bahamas 1st (B) 4 × 400 m relay 3:31.01
Commonwealth Games Glasgow, United Kingdom 17th (sf) 400 m 53.37
4th 4 × 400 m relay 3:30.27
2015 World Relays Nassau, Bahamas 7th 4 × 400 m relay 3:30.03
World Championships Beijing, China 12th (h) 4 × 400 m relay 3:28.61
2016 Olympic Games Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 24th (sf) 400 m 52.68
8th 4 × 400 m relay 3:27.45
2017 World Relays Nassau, Bahamas 5th 4 × 400 m relay 3:28.80
World Championships London, United Kingdom 26th (h) 400 m 52.22
10th (h) 4 × 400 m relay 3:28.02
2018 Commonwealth Games Gold Coast, Australia 12th (sf) 400 metres 52.65
5th 4 × 400 m relay 3:27.43
2019 World Relays Yokohama, Japan 5th (B) 4 × 400 m relay 3:32.22
Universiade Naples, Italy 8th 800 m 2:04.19
3rd 4 × 400 m relay 3:34.01
World Championships Doha, Qatar 22nd (sf) 800 m 2:04.76
2021 Olympic Games Tokyo, Japan 40th (h) 800 m 2:05.44

References

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  1. ^ "2018 CWG bio". Retrieved 30 April 2018.
  2. ^ "Morgan Mitchell". IAAF. 29 August 2015. Retrieved 29 August 2015.
  3. ^ "Glasgow 2014 - Morgan Mitchell Profile". Archived from the original on 3 February 2017. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  4. ^ Gleeson, Michael (9 April 2014). "Rising star Morgan Mitchell makes Australia's Commonwealth Games team". Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  5. ^ Cowan, Geordie. "Proud father to watch daughter compete for Commonwealth Gold". Archived from the original on 22 August 2016. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  6. ^ "Morgan Mitchell". Archived from the original on 23 August 2016. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  7. ^ "Morgan Mitchell goes the extra lap in chase for Caster Semenya". The Australian. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
  8. ^ "Morgan Mitchell". Australian Olympic Committee. Retrieved 15 September 2021.
  9. ^ "Athletics MITCHELL Morgan". Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Archived from the original on 15 September 2021. Retrieved 15 September 2021.
  10. ^ https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/fitness/inspiration/vegan-olympian-morgan-mitchells-plan-for-paris-revealed/news-story/538368f71954cd4f1429bf5f354298d2 [bare URL]
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