Kristi Castlin (born July 7, 1988) is an American

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

athlete who specializes in the

100 metres hurdles The 100 metres hurdles, or 100-meter hurdles, is a track and field event run mainly by women (the male counterpart is the 110 metres hurdles). For the race, ten Hurdling, hurdles of a height of are placed along a straight course of . The first h ...

. She won a bronze medal at the 2016 Olympics. Her personal best for the event is 12.50 seconds, set on July 8, 2016 during the finals of the 2016 United States Olympic Trials, in which she qualified for the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...

by placing 2nd. She was the 2012 American champion in the indoor

60 metres hurdles 60 metres hurdles is a distance in hurdling which is generally run in indoor competitions. It is equivalent with the first 5 hurdles of a standard outdoor hurdle race. The current women's and men's world records are 7.68 seconds ( Susanna K ...

and represented the United States at the

2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships The 2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics was the 14th edition of the global-level indoor track and field competition and was held between March 9–11, 2012 at the Ataköy Athletics Arena in Istanbul, Turkey. It was the first of four ...

. She shares the

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...

for the

shuttle hurdle relay Shuttle hurdle relay (SHR) is a type of a relay race in track and field in which participants jump (sprint) over hurdles. The shuttle hurdle relay is contested at the Drake Relays, Kansas Relays, Mt. SAC Relays, Penn Relays, Texas Relays, Akron Rela ...

, with her time of 50.78 seconds set in 2013. She competed collegiately for the Virginia Tech Hokies and had seven All-America finishes in the NCAA championships. These accomplishments earned her a place in the Virginia Tech sports hall of fame. She was a gold medalist at the Pan American Junior Athletics Championships in 2007 and a silver medalist at the

NACAC Under-23 Championships in Athletics The NACAC U23 Championships in Athletics is an under-23 athletics competition held between the member associations of the North American, Central American and Caribbean Athletic Association The North American, Central American and Caribbean Athlet ...

in 2008. During the 2016 Summer Olympics, Castlin wore a traditional

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

bindi. Castlin won a bronze medal in the women's 100 metres hurdles, completing the

sweep Sweep or swept may refer to: Cleaning * Sweep, the action of using a brush to clean * Chimney sweep, a worker who clears ash and soot from chimneys * Street sweeper, a person's occupation, or a machine that cleans streets * Swept quartz, a clean ...

of the event along with two of her USA teammates,

Brianna Rollins Brianna Rollins-McNeal (born August 18, 1991) is an American track and field athlete who specializes in the 100 metres hurdles. She is the 2016 Olympic champion and the 2013 World champion in the 100 metres hurdles. Her time of 12.26 is tied as ...

and

Nia Ali Nia Sifaatihii Ali (born October 23, 1988) is an American track and field athlete, who specializes in the 100 m hurdles, heptathlon, and other events. She is the 2016 Olympic Silver Medalist in the 100-meter hurdles, the 2019 World champion in ...

, who won gold and silver medals respectively. It was the only sweep in the 2016 Olympic Athletics program.

Early life

Castlin was born in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

to Kimberly and Rodney Castlin. She did not take up track and field until the age of fourteen, only becoming interested when she noticed she was quicker than her classmates. While still in high school, she ran a Georgia state record time of 13.73 seconds for the

.Kristi Castlin
Hokie Sports. Retrieved October 15, 2019. She graduated in the top five percent of her class, and given her athletic ability, she gained a scholarship to study

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also ...

. She graduated from Virginia Tech in 2010.

College career

In her first indoor season competing collegiately for the Virginia Tech Hokies, Castlin broke the school records in both the

(8.20 seconds) and

55 metres hurdles 55 metres hurdles is a distance in hurdling, usually only run in indoor competitions. This is more commonly run at the high school level. The objective is to approach the first hurdle with 7 steps, each hurdle after that needs to have 3 step interv ...

(7.61 seconds). She received

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

n honors for her ninth-place finish at the 2007 NCAA Indoor Championships and was the runner-up at the

Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate athletic conference located in the eastern United States. Headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC's fifteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Associa ...

(ACC) indoor meet. Outdoors, she broke the American junior (under-20) record for the 100 metres hurdles, running a time of 12.91 seconds. She won the ACC Outdoor Championships title and placed ninth at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. After a win at the

USA Junior Outdoor Track and Field Championships The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, Castlin made her international debut at the

2007 Pan American Junior Athletics Championships The 14th Pan American Junior Athletics Championships were held in São Paulo, Brazil at the Estádio Ícaro de Castro Melo on July 6 to July 8, 2007. A detailed report on the results was given. Participation (unofficial) Detailed result list ...

and came away with the gold medal and a 100 metres hurdles championship record of 13.02 seconds, beating her compatriot

Queen Harrison Queen Quedith Claye née Harrison (born September 10, 1988) is an American hurdler and sprinter who competed in the 400 metres hurdles at the 2008 Summer Olympics. She was a six-time collegiate All-American at Virginia Tech where she was elect ...

. Castlin continued to improve in the 2008 season. She again broke two school records in indoor hurdles and was runner-up to Tiffany Ofili at the 2008 NCAA Indoor Championships. She was also runner-up in the 60 metres hurdles at the ACC Indoor Championships. Outdoors, she won the ACC 100 metres hurdles title and ran a personal record time of 12.81 seconds for the season. With that time, she was ranked 25th in the world that year. She was a semi-finalist at the 2008 United States Olympic Trials and claimed her second international medal, a silver behind Ofili, at the

2008 NACAC Under-23 Championships in Athletics The 5th NACAC Under-23 Championships in Athletics were held in Toluca, Mexico, at the Alberto "Chivo" Córdova Stadium at the Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México on July 18–20, 2008. A detailed report on the results was given. Medal ...

. Her third collegiate season saw her win the ACC hurdles titles both indoors and outdoors. At the 2009 NCAA Outdoor Championships she was again runner-up in the 100 m hurdles behind

Michigan Wolverines The Michigan Wolverines comprise 29 varsity sports teams at the University of Michigan. These teams compete in the NCAA's Division I and in the Big Ten Conference in all sports except women's water polo, which competes in the NCAA inter-divisio ...

' Tiffany Ofili. Ofili was also victorious at the NCAA Indoor Championships, with Castlin taking third place on that occasion. In her final year in 2010 she was runner-up at the NCAA Indoor Championships behind Queen Harrison, She was knocked out of the top three at the NCAA Outdoor competition – her last NCAA event – and took fourth place behind

Aleesha Barber Aleesha Barber (born 16 May 1987) is a Trinidadian sprint hurdler. She is a 2007 NCAA All-American honoree, a six-time Big Ten Conference champion, and a seven-time collegiate record holder. She set a personal best time of 12.85 seconds at the ...

. Castlin closed her career with the Hokies having won four ACC titles, broken the conference record for the 100 m hurdles and taken eight All-American honors from NCAA competition.

Professional career

Castlin turned professional after leaving Virginia Tech, gaining an Adidas sponsorship, and set a season's best of 12.83 seconds at the

2011 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships The 2011 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships were held at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon. Organised by USA Track and Field, the four-day competition took place from June 23–26 and served as the national championships in track and field for ...

. However, she false started in the semi-finals and was disqualified. She secured her first national title at the

2012 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships The 2012 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships was held at Albuquerque Convention Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Organized by USA Track and Field (USATF), the two-day competition took place on February 25–26, in conjunction with the USA In ...

, setting a personal record of 7.84 seconds in the process. The time ultimately ranked as the second fastest in the world that year for the 60 m hurdles. This gained her selection for the

– her first senior appearance. In spite of her entering the competition as one of the favourites, she failed to finish her heat as she mistook the sound of the starter's pistol for a recall (due to the echo in the hall) and stopped running before the first hurdle. At the 2012 United States Olympic Trials she reached the semi-finals, but her time of 12.93 seconds was not enough to progress. She performed well, however, on the

2012 IAAF Diamond League The 2012 IAAF Diamond League (also known as the 2012 Samsung Diamond League for sponsorship purposes) was the third edition of the Diamond League, an annual series of fourteen one-day track and field meetings. The series began on 11 May in Doha, Q ...

circuit that year. She greatly improved her personal record to 12.56 seconds as runner-up at the Bislett Games in

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

– a time which ranked her sixth in the world for 2012. Her other major placings included fourth at both the

Meeting Areva Meeting de Paris (formerly known as the Meeting Areva and Meeting Gaz de France) is an annual track and field meeting at the Stade Sébastien Charléty in Paris, France. Previously one of the IAAF Golden League events, it is now part of the Diamon ...

in Paris and the London Grand Prix. Castlin tried to defend her national title at the

2013 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships The 2013 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships was held at Albuquerque Convention Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Organised by USA Track and Field (USATF), the three-day competition took place March 1–3 in conjunction with the USA Indoor Co ...

, but was beaten into second place by

. At the

2013 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships The 2013 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships was held at Drake Stadium in Des Moines, Iowa. Organised by USA Track and Field, the four-day competition took place June 20–23 in conjunction with the USA Junior Outdoor Track & Field Champions ...

she had her best national placing yet, taking sixth in a time of 12.61 seconds (her fastest that year). She ranked tenth globally for the season. Her 2013 was highlighted by a

in the infrequently contested

– at the

Florida Relays Florida is a U.S. state, state located in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia (U.S. state), Geo ...

a team of Ali, Castlin,

Yvette Lewis Yvette Lewis may refer to: * Yvette Lewis (athlete) * Yvette Lewis (politician) {{hndis, Lewis, Yvette ...

and Queen Harrison completed the 4×100 m relay event in a new best time of 50.78 seconds. She ranked in the top three at the

2014 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships The 2014 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships was held at Albuquerque Convention Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Organised by USA Track and Field (USATF), the three-day competition took place February 21–23 in conjunction with the USA Ind ...

, doing so at the national event for the third year running. She was selected at the

USA Track & Field USA Track & Field (USATF) is the United States national governing body for the sports of track and field, cross country running, road running and racewalking (known as the sport of athletics outside the US). The USATF was known between 1979 and ...

athlete of the week at the end of April 2014 as a result of her breaking

' streak of 35 races without defeat; Castlin's run of 12.571 seconds edged Rollins by five thousandths of a second and broke the Drake Relays meet record. This proved to be her fastest of the season and enough to place her seventh in the annual global rankings. She defeated both Rollins (the world champion) and Sally Pearson (the Olympic champion) at the

Spitzen Leichtathletik Luzern The Spitzen Leichtathletik Luzern (English: Top Athletics Lucerne) is an annual track and field meet that takes place in Lucerne, Switzerland. First held in 1987, the meeting usually takes place in July at Stadion Allmend. Meeting records Men ...

in July. She ended the year with a win in the non-Diamond League 100 m hurdles at the

Memorial Van Damme The Memorial Van Damme is an annual athletics event at the King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels, Belgium, that takes place in late August or early September. Previously one of the IAAF Golden League events, it is now the final event of the Diamond L ...

meet in Brussels. During the 2016 United States Olympic Trials for track and field, Castlin placed second in the 100 m hurdles with a time of 12.50 seconds, behind

and ahead of

, and qualified to represent the United States at the

in Brazil. She earned a bronze medal at the Rio Olympics in the 100 m hurdles, with a time of 12.61 seconds, outleaning Cindy Ofili at the finish. Castlin finished behind American teammates Brianna Rollins, who earned the gold medal with a time of 12.48 seconds, and Nia Ali, who earned the silver medal with a time of 12.59 seconds. It was the first time in Olympic history that American women had swept the medals in any event, and made the United States the first country to win gold, silver, and bronze in the women's 100 m hurdles in one Olympics. HSInternational Sports Management announced its signing of Kristi "Hollywood" Castlin, the Rio Olympic Bronze Medalist at 100 m Hurdles.

Personal bests

;Outdoor *

100-meter hurdles The 100 metres hurdles, or 100-meter hurdles, is a track and field event run mainly by women (the male counterpart is the 110 metres hurdles). For the race, ten hurdles of a height of are placed along a straight course of . The first hurdle is p ...

– 12.50 (2016) ;Indoor *

50-meter hurdles 50 metres hurdles is a distance in hurdling, usually only run in indoor competitions. Because very few contests are held over the distance, most of the fastest times recorded for the event were set during specially measured and timed races over lon ...

– 6.81 (2012) *

55-meter hurdles 55 metres hurdles is a distance in hurdling Hurdling is the act of jumping over an obstacle at a high speed or in a sprint. In the early 19th century, hurdlers ran at and jumped over each hurdle (sometimes known as 'burgles'), landing on both fee ...

– 7.37 (2012) *

60-meter hurdles 60 metres hurdles is a distance in hurdling which is generally run in indoor competitions. It is equivalent with the first 5 hurdles of a standard outdoor hurdle race. The current women's and men's world records are 7.68 seconds ( Susanna K ...

– 7.84 (2012) *

200-meter dash The 200 metres, or 200-meter dash, is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 metre racetrack, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques is needed to successfully run the race. A slightl ...

– 24.61 (2008)

National titles

USA Indoor Track and Field Championships The USA Indoor Track and Field Championships is an annual indoor track and field competition organized by USA Track & Field, which serves as the American national championships for the sport. In years which feature a World Indoor Championships in ...

: 2012

International competitions

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Castlin, Kristi 1988 births Living people Track and field athletes from Atlanta American female hurdlers Virginia Tech Hokies women's track and field athletes World record holders in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Olympics Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in track and field Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics African-American female track and field athletes USA Indoor Track and Field Championships winners 21st-century African-American sportspeople 21st-century African-American women 20th-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women