Morgan Uceny (born March 10, 1985) is a retired

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

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 specialized in

middle distance running Middle-distance running events are track races longer than sprints, ranging from 500 metres up to . The standard middle distances are the 800 metres, 1500 metres and mile run, although the 3000 metres may also be classified as a middle-distanc ...

. Uceny won three national championships and was the 2011

IAAF 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 ...

Champion at

1500 meters The 1500 metres or 1500-metre run is the foremost middle distance track event in athletics. The distance has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896 and the World Championships in Athletics since 1983. It is equivalent to 1.5 kilometers ...

. She ended 2011 as the first American since 1985 to be ranked number one in the world in the 1500 m by

Track & Field News ''Track & Field News'' is an American monthly sports magazine founded in 1948 by brothers Bert Nelson and Cordner Nelson, focused on the world of track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includ ...

. She represented her country at the

2012 Summer Olympics 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 ...

2007 Pan American Games The 2007 Pan American Games, officially known as the XV Pan American Games () and commonly known as Rio 2007, were a major Americas, continental multi-sport event that took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from July 13 to 29, 2007. A total of ...

and the

2011 World Championships in Athletics The 13th IAAF World Championships in Athletics () was an international athletics competition that was held in Daegu, South Korea. It started on 27 August 2011 and finished on 4 September 2011. The United States topped the medal standings in the ...

. Her personal records are 1:58.37 minutes for the

800 meters The 800 metres, or 800 meters ( US spelling), is a common track running event. It is the shortest commonly run middle-distance running event. The 800 metres is run over two laps of an outdoor (400-metre) track and has been an Olympic event sin ...

and 4:00.06 minutes for the 1500 meters.

Personal life

Uceny was raised in

Plymouth, Indiana Plymouth is a city and the county seat of Marshall County, Indiana, United States. The population is 10,214 in the 2020 census. Plymouth was the site of the first retail outlet of defunct U.S. retailer Montgomery Ward in 1926. History Earl ...

, with her father, Marty, her mother, Brenda, and her two older brothers Alex and Matt. She is of

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descent through her great-grandfather. As a child she loved basketball and aspired to play in the WNBA. She ran track and played basketball in high school, also running cross-country her freshman and sophomore years, but decided to quit and focus on basketball and track. She won the state 800 meter championship her Junior year. In March 2017, Morgan married professional rock climber Shane Messer.

College career

Uceny attended

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

and graduated in 2007 as a Four-Time All-American: Indoor 800m (2006, 2007) & Outdoor 800m (2005, 2007).

Professional career

Uceny took a bronze medal over 800 m at the 2008

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 i ...

and was the winner in the mile at the 2010 indoor nationals. In the 2011 season she won the 1500 m at the Brussels

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 ...

, out-sprinting a loaded field and setting the world leading time of 4:00.06, with a closing 400m of 61 seconds. At the

2011 IAAF World Championships The 13th IAAF World Championships in Athletics () was an international athletics competition that was held in Daegu, South Korea. It started on 27 August 2011 and finished on 4 September 2011. The United States topped the medal standings in the ...

Daegu Daegu (; ), formerly spelled Taegu and officially Daegu Metropolitan City (), is a city in southeastern South Korea. It is the third-largest urban agglomeration in South Korea after Seoul and Busan; the fourth-largest List of provincial-level ci ...

, she was tripped by Kenyan runner

Hellen Obiri Hellen Onsando Obiri (born 13 December 1989) is a Kenyan middle- and long-distance runner. She is the only woman to have won world titles in indoor track, outdoor track and cross country. Obiri is a two-time Olympic 5,000 metres silver med ...

who had fallen, and ended up placing 10th in the final, well out of medal contention. Despite the result, Uceny finished the 2011 season ranked No.1 in the world.Olympics 2012: Morgan Uceny falls during 1,500-meter final
- Indystar.com, 10 August 2012 Uceny won the national titles in the 1500 m at the 2012 US track and field Olympic Trials, qualifying for her first Olympics, alongside

Shannon Rowbury Shannon Solares-Rowbury (born September 19, 1984) is an American middle-distance runner from San Francisco, California. After competing collegiately for Duke University, she turned professional in 2007. Rowbury has represented the United States ...

, and

Jenny Simpson Jennifer Simpson (née Barringer; born August 23, 1986) is a retired American middle- and long-distance runner. She won the gold medal in the 1500 meters at the 2011 World Championships, silvers at the 2013 and 2017 World Championships, and a ...

. At the London Games, Uceny and Rowbury made it to the final, but a mid-race clash with Ekaterina Kostetskaya meant she fell hard onto the track as the pack moved on, injuring her back and right side. She did not finish the race and left the stadium in tears. Uceny once again made the 1500 m final at the 2014 USA Championships, but was clipped around halfway through the race and fell. Uceny ran 4:04.76 in the 1500 metres at the

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

Diamond League to redeem herself and this was her fastest time since 2012 summer. Uceny ran a 4:11.18 1500 m en route to 4:29.39

mile The mile, sometimes the international mile or statute mile to distinguish it from other miles, is a imperial unit, British imperial unit and United States customary unit of length; both are based on the older English unit of Unit of length, le ...

Fort Washington Avenue Armory The Fort Washington Avenue Armory, also known as the Fort Washington Armory, The Armory, and the 22nd Regiment Armory, is a historic 5,000-seat arena and armory building located at 216 Fort Washington Avenue, between West 168th and 169th Stre ...

. Uceny ran a season best 4:09.31 1500 m at June 2015 Sainsbury's Birmingham Grand Prix. At US championship 1500 m, Uceny finished 21st. Uceny ran a season best 4:34.02 mile at

Sir Walter Miler The Sir Walter Miler is an outdoor mile run, one mile race held annually at Meredith College in Raleigh North Carolina, typically the first Friday in August. The race is named after Sir Walter Raleigh. It is directed and promoted by Sir Walter Ru ...

hosted by

Meredith College Meredith College is a private women's liberal arts college and coeducational graduate school Postgraduate education, graduate education, or graduate school consists of academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qu ...

. Uceny ran 4:09.21 1500 m at NYRR

Millrose Games The Millrose Games are an annual indoor athletics (track & field) meet held each February in New York City. Among the world's most prestigious indoor track meets, the games started taking place at the Armory in Washington Heights in 2012, after ...

. Uceny ran 2:02.00 near Boston, Massachusetts, 4:03.94 for 1500 at

Furman University Furman University is a private university in Greenville, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1826 and named after Baptist pastor Richard Furman, the Liberal arts college, liberal arts university is the oldest private institution of higher l ...

elite women race, placed 5th at the 1500 m final at 2016

US Olympic Trials (track and field) The United States Olympic trials for the sport of track and field is the quadrennial meet to select the United States representatives at the Olympic Games. Since 1992, the meet has also served as the year's USA Outdoor Track and Field Championsh ...

and placed 10th in 4:24.6 at 2016

Fifth Avenue Mile The Fifth Avenue Mile is an annual road race on Fifth Avenue in New York City, United States. The race begins at 80th Street and heads twenty blocks south to 60th Street. First held on September 26, 1981, the race is currently organized by ...

. Olympian and former world number one Morgan Uceny has announced her retirement from professional track and field.US OLYMPIAN MORGAN UCENY ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT - December 14, 2016
Global Athletics & Marketing. Retrieved by December 14, 2016.

International competitions

National championships

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Uceny, Morgan 1985 births Living people People from Plymouth, Indiana Track and field athletes from Indiana American female middle-distance runners Olympic track and field athletes for the United States Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics Pan American Games track and field athletes for the United States Athletes (track and field) at the 2007 Pan American Games World Athletics Championships athletes for the United States Cornell Big Red women's track and field athletes American people of Czech descent Diamond League winners USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners USA Indoor Track and Field Championships winners 21st-century American sportswomen