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Fred Kerley

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Fredrick Lee Kerley OLY[citation needed] (/ˈkɜːrli/ KUR-lee; born May 7, 1995)[2] is an American track and field sprinter. He was the Olympic silver medalist over 100 m at the 2020 Olympics and bronze medalist at the 2024 Olympics in the same event. Kerley has earned an additional six medals at the World Championships, most notably 100m gold at the 2022 edition. He has also medalled in the 400m, 4 x 100m relay, and 4 × 400 m relay and won eleven Diamond League races, including two Diamond League finals - the 400m in 2018 and the 100m in 2021.

Fred Kerley
OLY
Kerley at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene
Personal information
Full nameFredrick Lee Kerley
Born (1995-05-07) May 7, 1995 (age 29)
San Antonio, Texas, U.S.
Home townTaylor, Texas, U.S.
Height6 ft 3 in (191 cm)[1]
Weight205 lb (93 kg)[1]
Sport
CountryUnited States
SportTrack and field
EventSprints
College team
Turned proJune 2017
Coached byQuincy Watts
Achievements and titles
Highest world ranking1st (100m, weeks 58)
Personal bests
Medal record
Men's athletics
Representing the  United States
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 2020 Tokyo 100 m
Bronze medal – third place 2024 Paris 100 m
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2019 Doha 4×400 m relay
Gold medal – first place 2022 Eugene 100 m
Gold medal – first place 2023 Budapest 4×100 m relay
Silver medal – second place 2017 London 4×400 m relay
Bronze medal – third place 2019 Doha 400 m
World Indoor Championships
Silver medal – second place 2018 Birmingham 4×400 m relay
Diamond League
Gold medal – first place 2018 400 m
Gold medal – first place 2021 100 m
NACAC U23 Championships
Gold medal – first place 2016 San Salvador 4×100 m relay

His personal best time of 43.64 seconds makes him the tenth fastest man in history over 400 metres.[3] During the pandemic, Kerley chose to focus on the 100 m during the Olympic cycle to improve his basic speed for future attempts at a sub-43 400 m. The decision to move down paid off as he won the silver medal in the 100 m at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics with a 9.84 performance. His personal best time of 9.76 seconds makes him the sixth fastest man in history over the straightaway sprint, behind Usain Bolt, Yohan Blake, Tyson Gay, Asafa Powell and Justin Gatlin and joint with Christian Coleman and Trayvon Bromell.

Kerley is one of only three men along with Michael Norman and Wayde van Niekerk to go sub-10 seconds in 100 m, sub-20 seconds in 200 m and sub-44 seconds in 400 m.

Early life and college

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Kerley attended Taylor High School and his youth team was the College Station Sprinters in College Station, Texas. Afterwards he attended South Plains College from 2013 to 2015 before transferring to Texas A&M.

In 2016, Fred Kerley tried out for the Olympic team at the USA Olympic Trials.[4] He did not qualify out of his heat, but he went on to represent the United States at the NACAC Under-23 Championships where he anchored the 4 × 100 meters relay team to gold.[5]

In March 2017, he won the 400 m at the NCAA Division I Championships in a world leading time of 44.85 s, one of the top ten fastest indoor times ever. He joined his younger brother Mylik Kerley as he anchored the Aggies to a come from behind victory in the 4 × 400 m relay. The two first place finishes contributed 20 points to the team, helping bring Texas A&M to their first ever team victory at the NCAA Track and Field Championships, run on their home track. In May, Kerley ran 44.09 s, just 0.09 s off the NCAA record, while easing to the finish line at the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Championships in Columbia, South Carolina.[6] A few weeks later Kerley set the NCAA record in the men's 400 m at the 2017 NCAA West Preliminary with a time of 43.70 s, taking three-tenths of a second off the 44.00 record by Olympic champion Quincy Watts, set almost 25 years earlier.[7][8] Kerley had met Watts just before the race.[9] He concluded his amateur career to win the 400 m and 4 × 400 m relay at the 2017 NCAA Division I Championships in June.

Professional career

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2017

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Kerley at the 2018 USATF Indoor Championships

A few weeks later, after turning professional and signing with Nike, Kerley won the 400 m at the USATF Championships in 44.03 seconds, qualifying to represent the United States in both the 400 m and the 4 × 400 m relay at the World Championships in Athletics. After winning his heat he finished third in his semi, but qualified for the final on time.[10] In the final he was unable to replicate his form from earlier in the season, finishing seventh in a time of 45.23 s. He came back a day later to help the US qualify for the finals in the relay, and then a few days later earned a silver medal behind Trinidad and Tobago.

2018

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Training under Kevin Tyler with widely-renowned club ALTIS in Phoenix, Arizona,[11] Kerley finished 3rd in the 400m at the 2018 US Indoor Championships, failing to qualify for the individual 400m at the upcoming World Indoor Championships but making it onto the 4 × 400 m relay team. There, he helped the team to a silver medal finish.

Outdoors, Kerley ran several races across the international circuit, including a win in the 400m at the Rome Diamond League. However, none of his times came close to his 43.70 personal best. Despite suffering an injury in June, Kerley bounced back in August to win at the Birmingham Diamond League, before winning the Diamond League trophy in the men's 400 meters in Zurich.[12] After the season, he returned to Texas A&M to train under Francique, stating to Track & Field News "I believe in him so much that I had to come back to train with him."[1]

2019

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Kerley was selected to compete for the US in the 4x400m relay at the 2019 IAAF World Relays, but the team was disqualified in the preliminaries. Kerley took wins at the Shanghai Diamond League and the Racers Grand Prix in Kingston, Jamaica, and finished third at the Stanford Diamond League. A month later, Kerley won the US title in a new personal best time of 43.64 seconds, making him the 7th fastest man on the all-time rankings at the time. At the World Championships in Doha, Kerley won the bronze medal in the individual event and helped the US to a gold in the relay.

2021

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After the COVID-19 pandemic erased the 2020 season and delayed the 2020 Summer Olympics by a year, Kerley kicked off his 2021 season with several 100m races in order to work on his speed for the longer sprint; he broke the historic 10-second barrier at the TRUfit Classic in Miami on April 24, winning in 9.91 s with a maximum allowable wind velocity for record purposes (+2.0 m/s).[13] On May 19 he won the men's 100 m in 9.96 s at the Golden Spike in Ostrava, finishing ahead of former Olympic and World champion Justin Gatlin who settled for second in 10.08 s. Kerley also ran in the 200 m where he placed second with a time of 20.27 s, trailing Kenny Bednarek from the start who won in 19.93 s. According to Reuters, Kerley was satisfied with his performances, but thought there was more work to do in his 200 m and his focus for the Olympic Trials would be 400 m.[14] However, after 400m races in Doha and Hengelo caused his ankle to swell due to the turns, he decided to focus on the 100m and 200m at the Trials. Kerley also stated that the popularity of the 100m was another factor in his switch.

Despite online backlash for his decision, Kerley silenced doubters by finishing third in the 100m at the Trials, qualifying for his first Olympic team. In the 200m, Kerley struggled throughout the rounds due to the turns and their impact on his ankles, and he narrowly qualified for the final on time. However, he managed to finish an impressive fourth with his first sub-20 performance; this made him the 3rd athlete to join the "Sub 10s, 20s, 44s club for the 100m, 200m & 400m sprints", behind 400m World Record holder Wayde van Niekerk & Michael Norman.[15]

2022

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Prior to the U.S. Championships, Kerley competed in three Diamond Leagues: Doha, where he placed second in the 200m; the Prefontaine Classic, where he placed second in the 100m; and at the Rome Golden Gala, where he won the 100m.

At the 2022 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, Kerley won the 100m in 9.77 seconds and placed third in the 200m in 19.83 seconds. Kerley ran 9.76 seconds, a personal best, in the semi-final.[16]

While competing in the 2022 World Athletics Championships, Kerley won his maiden individual World Championship gold medal in the 100m.[17] In the final, Kerley pipped compatriot Marvin Bracy on the line with a time of 9.86 seconds winning the world title in the process. Fellow American Trayvon Bromell finished third, completing a clean sweep.[18] He was knocked out of the 200m in the semi-final.

2023

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Kerley enjoyed a strong start to his 2023 season, taking home wins in the Doha, Rabat, and Florence Diamond Leagues.[19] At the 2023 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, Kerley contested only the 200m as he received a bye to the 2023 World Championships as the 2022 World Champion in the 100m. He placed fourth in the final of the 200m to Erriyon Knighton, Kenny Bednarek, and Courtney Lindsey. Later in July, he placed second in the Silesia Diamond League 100m.

Kerley failed to advance from his semi-final of the 100m at the 2023 World Athletics Championships. However, he earned gold as a member of the United States 4x100m relay team.

Soon after his third place finish in the Xiamen Diamond League 100m, in September 2023, Kerley announced that he was no longer coached by Alleyne Francique and would be coached by Quincy Watts, the Director of Track and Field at the University of Southern California.[20]

Statistics

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Information from World Athletics profile unless otherwise noted.[21]

Personal bests

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Surface Event Time Venue Date Notes
Outdoor 400 meters 43.64 Des Moines, United States July 27, 2019 #8 all-time
200 meters 19.76 A Nairobi, Kenya September 18, 2021 +2.0 m/s wind, #22 all-time
100 meters 9.76 Eugene, United States June 24, 2022 +1.8 m/s, #6 all-time
4 × 400 m relay 2:56.69 Doha, Qatar October 6, 2019 2019 WL
4 × 200 m relay 1:21.11 Austin, United States April 2, 2016
4 × 100 m relay 38.63 San Salvador, El Salvador July 16, 2017
Indoor 400 meters 44.85 College Station, United States March 11, 2017 Indoor 2017 WL,[22] #7 all-time
200 meters 20.58 Fayetteville, United States January 27, 2017
4 × 400 m relay 3:01.97 Birmingham, United Kingdom March 4, 2018

International championship results

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Representing the   United States
Year Competition Venue Position Event Time
2016 NACAC U23 Championships San Salvador, El Salvador 8th (semis) 200 m 21.17 +0.7 m/s wind, q[note 1]
1st 4 × 100 m relay 38.63 PB
2017 World Championships London, United Kingdom 7th 400 m 45.23
2nd 4 × 400 m relay 2:58.61 PB
2018 World Indoor Championships Birmingham, United Kingdom 2nd 4 × 400 m relay 3:01.97 #2 all-time[note 2]
2019 World Relays Yokohama, Japan DQ 4 × 400 m relay — Lane violation[26]
World Championships Doha, Qatar 3rd 400 m 44.17
1st 4 × 400 m relay 2:56.69 WL, PB[note 3]
2021 Olympic Games Tokyo, Japan 2nd 100 m 9.84 +0.1 m/s wind, PB
2022 World Championships Eugene, United States 1st 100 m 9.86 -0.1 m/s wind
20th (sf) 200 m 20.68 -0.1 m/s wind
2023 World Championships Budapest, Hungary 9th (sf) 100 m 10.02 -0.3 m/s wind
1st 4 × 100 m relay 37.38
2024 Olympic Games Paris, France 3rd 100 m 9.81 +1.0 m/s wind

Circuit wins and titles

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National championship results

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Representing South Plains College Texans (2014–2015), Texas A&M Aggies (2016–2017), Nike (2018–2022), and Asics (2023-2024)[28]
Year Competition Venue Position Event Time
2014 NJCAA Division I Championships Mesa, Arizona 6th 400 m 46.84
2nd 4 × 400 m relay 3:05.86
USATF Junior Championships Eugene, Oregon 8th 400 m 47.49 [29]
2015 NJCAA Indoor Championships Albuquerque, New Mexico 2nd 400 m 47.15 SB
2nd 4 × 400 m relay 3:12.56
NJCAA Division I Championships Hutchinson, Kansas 11th 400 m 47.81
3rd (semis) 4 × 400 m relay 3:11.75 q[note 4][30]
2016 NCAA Division I Indoor Championships Birmingham, Alabama 8th 4 × 400 m relay 3:07.49
NCAA Division I Championships Eugene, Oregon 13th 400 m 45.99
DNF (semi 1) 4 × 100 m relay — [31]
4th 4 × 400 m relay 3:03.94
US Olympic Trials Eugene, Oregon 27th 400 m 46.70 [32]
2017 NCAA Division I Indoor Championships College Station, Texas 1st 400 m 44.85 WL, PB[22]
1st 4 × 400 m relay 3:02.80
NCAA Division I Championships Eugene, Oregon 1st 400 m 44.10
4th 4 × 100 m relay 38.72 SB
1st 4 × 400 m relay 2:59.98
USATF Championships Sacramento, California 1st 400 m 44.03 [33]
2018 USATF Indoor Championships Albuquerque, New Mexico 5th 400 m 45.63 A[34]
2019 USATF Championships Des Moines, Iowa 1st 400 m 43.64 PB
2021 US Olympic Trials Eugene, Oregon 3rd 100 m 9.86 +0.8 m/s wind, PB
4th 200 m 19.90 +0.3 m/s wind, PB
2022 USATF Championships Eugene, Oregon 1st 100 m 9.77 +1.8 m/s wind
3rd 200 m 19.83 -0.3 m/s wind
2023 USATF Championships Eugene, Oregon 4th 200 m 19.86 -0.1 m/s wind
2024 US Olympic Trials Eugene, Oregon 3rd 100 m 9.88 +0.4 m/s wind
  • NCAA results from Track & Field Results Reporting System.[35][36]

400 metres seasonal bests

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The two highlighted times are track records (accurate as of September 2024).

Year Time Venue Date
2014 46.38 Mesa, United States May 16
2015 47.15 Albuquerque, United States March 7
2016 45.10 Tempe, United States April 9
2017 43.70 Austin, United States May 26
2018 44.33 Rome, Italy May 31
2019 43.64 Des Moines, United States July 27
2021 44.60 Doha, Qatar May 28
2022 44.47 St. George's, Grenada March 5

Track records

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As of 20 September 2024, Kerley holds the following track records for 100 metres, 200 metres and 400 metres.

A performance in red text was wind-assisted.

100 metres

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Location Time Windspeed
m/s 		Date Notes
Chorzów 9.87 + 1.9 25/08/2024 Track record shared with
Ronnie Baker (USA) from 22/08/2018.
Coral Gables, FL. 9.99 – 0.6 26/03/2022
Florence 9.94 0.0 02/06/2023
Miami, FL. 9.91 + 2.0 24/04/2021
Rabat 9.94 + 0.1 28/05/2023
Yokohama 9.88 + 1.5 21/05/2023

200 metres

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Location Time Windspeed
m/s 		Date
San Antonio 20.27 + 2.9 25/03/2017
Walnut 19.80 + 1.6 16/04/2022

400 metres

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Location Time Date
Austin, TX. 43.70 26/05/2017
Columbia 44.09 12/05/2017
Des Moines 43.64
PB		 27/07/2019

Source: https://www.alltime-athletics.com/men.htm

Personal life

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Kerley's older cousin is former NFL wide receiver Jeremy Kerley.[37]

Kerley has a Christian faith and regularly attended church after practice.[38]

Notes

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  1. ^ Qualified for the final, but did not start (DNS) in the final.[23][24]
  2. ^ Shared with Michael Cherry, Aldrich Bailey, and Vernon Norwood for the United States. Kerley was the first carrier before Cherry.[25]
  3. ^ Shared with Michael Cherry, Wil London, and Rai Benjamin for the United States. Kerley was the first carrier before Cherry.[27]
  4. ^ South Plains placed third in the final, but it is not clear from the Track & Field Results Reporting System who ran for the team in the final.

References

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  1. ^ a b c Jeff Hollobaugh (April 12, 2019). "T&FN Interview – Fred Kerley, World No. 1 in the 400". trackandfieldnews.com. Track & Field News. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
  2. ^ "KERLEY Fred". Paris 2024 Olympics. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  3. ^ "Top Lists – All time Top lists - Senior Outdoor 400 Metres Men". worldathletics.org. World Athletics. Retrieved February 18, 2021.
  4. ^ Jennifer Kendall (July 1, 2016). "Taylor track star competing for spot on U.S. Olympic team". fox7austin.com. FOX 7 Austin. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
  5. ^ Christy Millweard (August 14, 2016). "Taylor track star sets goal for 2020 Olympics". kvue.com. KVUE. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
  6. ^ Jon Mulkeen (May 14, 2017). "Kerley flies to 44.09 400m clocking at SEC Championships". iaaf.org. IAAF. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
  7. ^ Dennis Young (May 26, 2017). "WATCH: Fred Kerley Destroys Collegiate 400m Record In 43.70". flotrack.org. FloTrack. Retrieved December 24, 2018.
  8. ^ "Texas A&M's Fred Kerley Runs 43.70 400m to Crush Quincy Watts' NCAA Record – (Video)". letsrun.com. May 12, 2017. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
  9. ^ Taylor Dutch (June 5, 2017). "Record-Holders Quincy Watts, Fred Kerley Connect in 400m 'Pain Business'". flotrack.org. FloTrack. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
  10. ^ "Texas A&M's Fred Kerley qualifies for 400m final at IAAF World Championships". kbtx.com. KBTX. August 6, 2017. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
  11. ^ Cathal Dennehy (December 23, 2018). "After solid 2018 campaign, Kerley ready to take the next step as Doha approaches". iaaf.org. IAAF. Retrieved December 24, 2018.
  12. ^ Nick Zaccardi (August 30, 2018). "Noah Lyles matches Usain Bolt feat in Speed Racer socks". nbcsports.com. NBC. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
  13. ^ "MPM du 100m pour l'Américain Fred Kerley en 9'91". L'Équipe. April 26, 2021. Retrieved May 20, 2021.
  14. ^ "Kerley underlines his 100m credentials". Reuters. May 19, 2021. Retrieved May 20, 2021.
  15. ^ @AthleticsWeekly (June 28, 2021). "Fred Kerley is only the third man in..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  16. ^ "Kerley makes 'statement' in 100m heat - Johnson". BBC Sport. July 16, 2022. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
  17. ^ Fred Kerley delivers 100m 2022 Track and Field World Championships title, July 16, 2022, retrieved July 17, 2022
  18. ^ "Kerley leads U.S. sweep of 100 meters at worlds". ESPN.com. July 17, 2022. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
  19. ^ "Fred Kerley". World Athletics.
  20. ^ "Fred Kerley Announces Coaching Change, Working With Quincy Watts". FloTrack. September 26, 2023.
  21. ^ Fred Kerley at World Athletics
  22. ^ a b Jon Mulkeen (March 12, 2017). "COLEMAN SPEEDS TO SPRINT DOUBLE AT NCAA INDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS". iaaf.org. IAAF. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
  23. ^ "Event 307 Men 200 Meter Dash". tiempodellegada.com. July 17, 2016. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  24. ^ "Event 317 Men 200 Meter Dash". tiempodellegada.com. July 17, 2016. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  25. ^ Jason Henderson (March 4, 2018). "Poland smash world indoor 4x400m record". Athletics Weekly. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  26. ^ Stuart Weir (May 12, 2019). "2019 Yokohama Diary: The 4x400 meters relays at the 2019 IAAF World Relays". RunBlogRun. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  27. ^ "4 x 400 Metres Relay Men - Final". IAAF. October 6, 2019. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  28. ^ "What To Make Of Fred Kerley Leaving Nike For Asics". Citius Mag. February 22, 2023.
  29. ^ "2014 USATF Junior Outdoor Championships – Complete Results". usatf.org. USATF. July 6, 2014. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
  30. ^ "National Junior College Championships – Men's 4 x 400 Relay Preliminaries". Track & Field Results Reporting System (TFRRS). May 16, 2015. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
  31. ^ "NCAA Division I Track & Field Championships – Men's 4 x 100 Relay". Track & Field Results Reporting System (TFRRS). June 11, 2016. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
  32. ^ "2016 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Track & Field – Results". usatf.org. USATF. July 10, 2016. Archived from the original on July 15, 2016. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
  33. ^ "2017 USATF Championships – 6/22/2017 to 6/25/2017 – Hornet Stadium, Sacramento, Calif. – Results". usatf.org. USATF. June 25, 2017. Archived from the original on October 12, 2017. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
  34. ^ "2018 USA Indoor Track & Field Championships – Results". usatf.org. USATF. February 19, 2018. Archived from the original on June 28, 2018. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
  35. ^ "Fred Kerley at Texas A&M". Track & Field Results Reporting System (TFRRS). Retrieved February 20, 2019.
  36. ^ "Fred Kerley at South Plains". Track & Field Results Reporting System (TFRRS). Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  37. ^ "Fred Kerley, cousin of ex-Jets WR Jeremy Kerley, wins Olympic silver medal". USA Today. August 3, 2021.
  38. ^ Watta, Evelyn. "Fred Kerley: Top things that you didn't know about the new world champion". Olympics.com.
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