Perdita Felicien (born August 29, 1980) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

retired hurdler. Felicien is the 2003 World champion in the 100 metres hurdles and 2004 World indoor champion in the 60 metres hurdles. She also won silver medals at the 2007 World Championships, the 2010 World Indoor Championships, and twice at the

Pan American Games The Pan American Games, known as the Pan Am Games, is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas. It features thousands of athletes participating in competitions to win different summer sports. It is held among athletes from nations of th ...

. Her best time for the 100 metres hurdles of 12.46 secs from 2004 still stands as the Canadian record.

Early life

Born in

Oshawa, Ontario Oshawa is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the Lake Ontario shoreline. It lies in Southern Ontario, approximately east of downtown Toronto. It is commonly viewed as the eastern anchor of the Greater Toronto Area and of the Golden Horseshoe. It ...

, Felicien carries her mother's maiden name, whose origins are in the

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

island nation of

Saint Lucia Saint Lucia is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. Part of the Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, it is located north/northeast of the island of Saint Vincent (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines), Saint Vincent ...

. Her mother named her "Perdita" after she heard the name on the TV game show, ''

The Price is Right ''The Price Is Right'' is an American television game show where contestants compete by guessing the prices of merchandise to win cash and prizes. A 1972 revival by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman of their The Price Is Right (1956 American game ...

.'' Felicien moved to

Pickering, Ontario Pickering (2021 Canadian census, 2021 population 99,186) is a city located in Southern Ontario, Canada, immediately east of Toronto in Durham Region, Ontario, Durham Region. Beginning in the 1770s, the area was settled by primarily British colon ...

, where, as a student, she began competing in

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 ...

events at her school. She was motivated to join the school's track and field team after receiving an Award of Excellence in the Canada Fitness Award Program in grade 3. At first, she competed in the 100 m dash, inspired by Donovan Bailey and Bruny Surin of Canada, later adding the 200 m dash and long jump. Felicien dedicated herself to hurdling at

Pine Ridge Secondary School Pine Ridge Secondary School is a state school, public secondary school located in Pickering, Ontario operating within the Durham District School Board. It serves students in grades 9 through 12. The building has three stories with the third story ...

and won the

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

high-school hurdling championship in 1998. That year she added the first of two consecutive Canadian junior championships. Her performance at a scholastic meet in

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

brought offers of athletic scholarships from a number of U.S. universities, from which she chose the

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United States. Established in 1867, it is the f ...

, where she enrolled in the study of

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 ...

Career

Coached by Gary Winckler, in her first year competing at the university level, Felicien earned All-American honors and in the 100 m hurdles set the record for the fastest time by a freshman in

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

history for the event. The following year she was ranked No. 1 in the 100 m hurdles by the NCAA for the entire outdoor season, and was the first Illinois athlete ever to win a national championship during both the indoor and outdoor seasons. Her performance earned her the first of three consecutive University of Illinois Female Athlete of the Year awards, and she was voted the U.S. Track Coaches Association National Female Outdoor Athlete of the Year. An undefeated Felicien won her second consecutive 100 m hurdles national title in 2003. She became the first University of Illinois female athlete to be named the

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Fa ...

"Athlete of the Year", and also earned NCAA Female Track & Field Athlete of the Year honors. Felicien blossomed into a major force on the international hurdling scene, topping off her season by winning the women's 100 m Hurdles Final at the

2003 World Championships in Athletics The 9th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations, were held from 23 August to 31 August 2003 in the streets of Paris and the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis, F ...

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 ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. With that win, Felicien became Canada's first ever female world gold medallist and the first female in

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

track & field history to win a gold medal in an individual event at the World Championships. She was named Canada's female athlete of the year – the first track athlete to capture that honor in 25 years. A much-anticipated showdown with hurdling great

Gail Devers Yolanda Gail Devers ( ; born November 19, 1966) is an American retired track and field sprinter who competed in the 60 metres, 60 m hurdles, 100 m and 100 m hurdles. One of the greatest and most decorated female sprinters of all time, she was ...

took place in March 2004. Felicien set a new record in defeating the three-time hurdles world champion in the 60 m hurdle final at the

2004 IAAF World Indoor Championships The 10th IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) were held in the Budapest Arena, Hungary between March 5 and March 7, 2004. A total off 139 countries were r ...

Budapest, Hungary Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

. She chalked up six straight wins leading up to the

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, then part of the King ...

Athens, Greece Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

, where she was expected to win gold in the 100 m hurdles on August 24, especially after Devers pulled out with an injury. Unexpectedly, in the event final, Felicien failed to clear the first hurdle and fell into the adjacent lane, knocking down the Russian competitor, Irina Shevchenko, and taking her out of the race and a chance at an Olympic medal, much to the obvious dismay of Shevchenko. Felicien returned to the track and had some success, winning medals at the world championships alongside her teammate Priscilla Lopes-Schliep. In 2007, she won a silver medal at the world championships in the 100 metre hurdles. Felicien did not compete in the

2008 Summer Olympics 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 fro ...

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

due to a foot injury. In August 2008, she was a guest commentator for

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV, or simply CBC) is a Television in Canada, Canadian English-language terrestrial television, broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcasting, p ...

's 2008 Olympics coverage of hurdles. During the summer of 2011, Felicien relocated to the University of Calgary in Alberta to train under the tutelage of former national team head coach, Les Gramantik, and her old coach, Gary Winckler. She also partnered with Jessica Zelinka, ranked the sixth-best heptathlete in the world. In June 2012, Felicien failed to qualify for the Canadian Olympic team for the

2012 London 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 ...

. She had finished third in the 2012 Canadian Olympic trials for track and field, in the 100 m hurdles event, under protest. However, she false started, and was disqualified. Felicien retired from competition in 2013. She went back to school to study journalism, and was a writer/reporter with '' CHCH News'' in

Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Hamilton has a 2021 Canadian census, population of 569,353 (2021), and its Census Metropolitan Area, census metropolitan area, which encompasses ...

. She was part of the broadcasting team for the Toronto 2015 PanAm Games coverage. In 2018, Felicien joined the CBC TV network broadcasting the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang in South Korea and later the Tokyo Olympics (2021). Since 2020, Felicien has been the host of '' All-Round Champion'', a TV series produced by Marblemedia for

TV Ontario TVO (stylized in all lowercase as tvo), formerly known as TVOntario, is a Canadian publicly funded English-language educational television network and media organization serving the Canadian province of Ontario. It operates flagship station ...

and BYU TV.

Charity

Felicien is a supporter of Count Me In, the largest youth-run organization in Canada. She spoke at the 2013 Count Me In Conference in Toronto. She is also an active ambassador for Right To Play.

Track & field accomplishments

2011 * Harry Jerome International Track Classic Winner the 100 metre hurdles in 12:79 secs. *Canadian National Champion (10th Title) 2010 *World Indoor Silver Medalist *60 m hurdles 7.86 *Drake Relays Hall of Fame Inductee *Continental Cup Bronze Medalist 2009 *Canadian National Champion *World Championship Finalist 2008 *Injured 2007 * 2007 IAAF World Championships Silver Medalist 100 m hurdles - 12.49 *Pan Am Games Silver Medalist *Canadian Track and Field Athlete of the Year *2007 Ontario Female Athlete of the Year 2005 *Canadian National Champion *World Championship Semi-Finalist 2004 * World Indoor Champion in the 60 m hurdles *Olympic Finalist *Canadian National Champion *City of Pickering Civic Award *Canadian Track and Field Athlete of the Year 2003 * IAAF World Championships World Champion in the 100 m hurdles *

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representatives in 1 ...

Champion in the 60 m and 100 m hurdles * Drake Relays Most Outstanding Athlete *Canadian Female Athlete of the Year *Canadian Track and Field Athlete of the Year *Canadian National Champion *Pan Am Games Silver Medalist *University of Illinois Athlete of the Year *Big Ten Conference Athlete of the Year 2002 *

Champion in the 100 m hurdles * University of Illinois Female Athlete of the Year * Drake Relays Most Outstanding Athlete * NCAA Record holder in the 60 m hurdles, 7.90 seconds * NCAA Champion in the 60 m hurdles * Big Ten Champion in the 60 m hurdles * All-American in the 60 m hurdles *Canadian National Champion *University of Illinois Female Athlete of the Year 2001 * All-American in the 100 m hurdles * All-American in the 60 m hurdles * USTCA National Female Athlete of the Year * Big Ten Female Outdoor Athlete of the Year * University of Illinois Female Athlete of the Year * Big Ten Indoor Freshman of the Year * World Track and Field Championship Semifinalist *Francophone Games Champion *University of Illinois Female Athlete of the Year 2000 *Olympian * Big Ten Outdoor Freshman of the Year * All-American in the 100 m hurdles *Canadian National Champion 1999 *Canadian Junior Champion 100 m h 1998 *Canadian Junior Champion 100 m h *OFSAA 100 m h Record Holder - 13.41 *1998 OFSAA Champion 100 m h *1998 OFSAA Silver 100 m *1998 OFSAA Champion 200 m - 24.67 1997 OFSAA Silver Medalist 100 m

References

*
Perdita Felicien Is a Canadian Hurdler By Sarah Luoma
{{DEFAULTSORT:Felicien, Perdita 1980 births Living people Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2003 Pan American Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2007 Pan American Games Black Canadian female track and field athletes Canadian female hurdlers Canadian people of Saint Lucian descent Olympic track and field athletes for Canada Sportspeople from Pickering, Ontario Sportspeople from Oshawa Track and field athletes from Ontario World Athletics Championships medalists Pan American Games silver medalists for Canada Pan American Games silver medalists in athletics (track and field) World Athletics Indoor Championships winners World Athletics Championships winners Big Ten Athlete of the Year winners Medalists at the 2003 Pan American Games Medalists at the 2007 Pan American Games Illinois Fighting Illini women's track and field athletes Canadian Track and Field Championships winners Canadian expatriate sportspeople in the United States NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships winners 21st-century Canadian sportswomen 20th-century Canadian sportswomen