Michelle Denee Carter (born October 12, 1985) is an American retired

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

athlete who competed in

shot put The shot put is a track-and-field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical Ball (sports), ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. For men, the sport has been a part of the Olympic Games, modern Olympics since their 1896 Summer Olym ...

. She won a gold medal in the event at the

2016 Rio Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...

, making her the first American woman to win Olympic gold in shot put and only the second to win a medal of any color. Carter is the former American record holder in the event with a distance of set at the 2016 Olympic Games. She was inducted into the

Texas Sports Hall of Fame The Texas Sports Hall of Fame recognizes sportsperson, athletes, coach (sport), coaches, and administrators who have made "lasting fame and honor to Sports in Texas, Texas sports". It was established in 1951 by the Texas Sports Writers Association ...

in 2020.

Early life

Carter was born on October 12, 1985, in San Jose,

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, and grew up in

Red Oak ''Quercus'' subgenus ''Quercus'' is one of the two subgenera into which the genus ''Quercus'' was divided in a 2017 classification (the other being subgenus ''Cerris''). It contains about 190 species divided among five sections. It may be calle ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. Her parents are Sandra and Michael Carter, the latter of whom won a silver medal in shot put at the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and commonly known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the ...

in Los Angeles and went on to play American football for the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...

. She has one brother, Michael Jr., and one sister, D’Andra. Carter is a 2003 graduate of Red Oak High School in

Red Oak, Texas Red Oak is a city in Ellis County, Texas, United States. It is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The population was 10,769 at the 2010 census, up from 4,301 at the 2000 census. The North Central Texas Council of Governments projects tha ...

, where she was a four-time state champion in shot put and held the girls’ national record in the event from 2003 to 2014. She earned an athletic scholarship to

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 students as of fall 2 ...

, where she competed in shot put, and graduated with a bachelor's degree in youth and community studies, with a minor in

kinesiology Kinesiology () is the scientific study of human body movement. Kinesiology addresses physiological, anatomical, Biomechanics, biomechanical, Pathology, pathological, neuropsychological principles and mechanisms of movement. Applications of kines ...

, in 2007.

Career

Carter won the 2016 gold medal at the Rio Olympics on the last of her six throws, edging two-time defending champion

Valerie Adams Dame Valerie Kasanita Adams (formerly Vili; born 6 October 1984) is a retired New Zealand shot putter. She is a four-time World champion, four-time World Indoor champion, two-time Olympic, three-time Commonwealth Games champion and twice IA ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

. In doing so, Carter became the first

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

women's athlete to win the event since the women's competition began at the

1948 Summer Olympic Games The 1948 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and officially branded as London 1948, were an international multi-sport event held from 29 July to 14 August 1948 in London, United Kingdom. Following a twelve-year hiatus cau ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, and only the second American to win any medal in the event ( Earlene Brown, bronze, 1960). Carter broke her own American record with an Olympic gold medal-winning toss of . She finished fifteenth at the

2008 Olympic Games The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fr ...

and fourth at the

2012 Olympic Games The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

. A bronze medalist at the 2015 and 2017 IAAF World Championships, Carter also won the gold medal at the 2016 World Indoor Championships after winning the bronze in 2012. She won the silver medal at the 2001 World Youth Championships and the gold medal at the 2004 World Junior Championships. In addition to winning the

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

United States Olympic Team Trials, she was the 2009, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016 national champion. While competing for the

, she won the NCAA collegiate national championship in 2006. In college, she was a seven-time

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

, and also won the

Big 12 Conference The Big 12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. It consists of 16 full-member universities (3 private universities and 13 public universities) in the states of Arizona, Colorado, Florida ...

title five times. In 2006, she won the NCAA indoor title to also help the University of Texas women claim the NCAA team title. With a runner-up finish in the shot put at the 2005 outdoor meet, Carter helped the Longhorns win the NCAA championship. In June 2022, Carter announced her retirement from competition.

Awards and recognitions

Carter was inducted into the

Texas Longhorns The Texas Longhorns are the athletic teams representing the University of Texas at Austin. The teams are sometimes referred to as the Horns and take their name from Longhorn cattle that were an important part of the development of Texas, and ...

Hall of Honor in 2016, the Texas Track and Field Hall of Fame in 2018, and the

in 2020.

Personal life

Carter is a

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

. She has said, "Through faith and sports, I've learned discipline and self-control. In the

Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...

, God tells us we have to work, even if what we want is not going to happen right away. People want a platform, but with that comes responsibility. Before winning the gold medal, I needed to be in a mature place to handle the opportunities that were going to come my way, to make sure I didn't use them for my advantage. You have to put your pride aside and let God's plan come through. He has given me this platform for Him to shine." She has also said "I know God allowed me to have this medal, and with it I want to glorify Him and point others to Him." As a child, Carter was diagnosed with

ADHD Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity, impulsivity, and emotional dysregulation that are excessive and pervasive, impairing in multiple ...

and

dyslexia Dyslexia (), previously known as word blindness, is a learning disability that affects either reading or writing. Different people are affected to different degrees. Problems may include difficulties in spelling words, reading quickly, wri ...

. Carter is a certified professional

make-up artist A make-up artist, also called a makeup artist, and often shortened to MUA, is an artist whose medium is the human body, applying makeup and Prosthetic makeup, prosthetics on others for theatre, television, film, fashion, magazines and other simil ...

. Carter has focused on body image both on and off the field, talking to young women about confidence through her program ''You Throw Girl''. "You have to understand everyone's body was built to do something. I was built to do something, and that's how I was built. I think the world is realizing we were promoting one body type and there have always been many." Carter married husband Courtney Elder in 2019. They first met as children at Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship church, when Carter was 5 years old, and reconnected as adults in 2016. Carter lives in

Grand Prairie Grand Prairie is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, located in Dallas, Tarrant, and Ellis counties with a small part extending into Johnson county. It is part of the Mid-Cities region in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It had a popul ...

, Texas.

Competition history

International competitions

Circuit wins and titles

Diamond League The Diamond League is an annual series of elite track and field athletic competitions comprising fifteen invitational athletics meetings. The series sits in the top tier of the World Athletics one-day meet competitions. The inaugural season was ...

** Memorial Van Damme (Final): 2016 **

Doha Diamond League The Doha Diamond League is an annual one-day track and field meeting held at the Suheim bin Hamad Stadium in Doha, Qatar. It is part of the Diamond League – the top level international circuit for the sport. It is typically held in May as the ...

: 2017 ** London Anniversary Games: 2015

National competitions

References

External links

* * * * *
University of Texas Athletics Hall of Honor

The Podium Life Podcast with Michelle Carter
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carter, Michelle 1985 births Living people Track and field athletes from San Jose, California American female shot putters African-American track and field athletes Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Olympics World Athletics Championships athletes for the United States World Athletics Championships medalists Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field Texas Longhorns women's track and field athletes Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics Olympic female shot putters USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners USA Indoor Track and Field Championships winners World Athletics Indoor Championships winners Athletes (track and field) at the 2011 Pan American Games Medalists at the 2011 Pan American Games Pan American Games bronze medalists for the United States in athletics (track and field) 21st-century African-American sportswomen 21st-century American sportswomen 20th-century African-American sportswomen 20th-century American sportswomen NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships winners Diamond League winners People with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder