Anson Henry (born March 9, 1979) is a retired

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) 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 ...

sprinter of Jamaican descent who specialized in the

100 metres The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been conteste ...

. He was born in

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, Canada.Athlete biography: Anson Henry
beijing2008.cn, ret: Aug 26, 2008 His personal best time is 10.12 seconds, achieved in May 2006 in

Doha Doha ( ar, الدوحة, ad-Dawḥa or ''ad-Dōḥa'') is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor, it is home to most of the count ...

. He also has 20.52 seconds in the

200 metres 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 ...

and 6.59 seconds in the

60 metres 60 metres, or 60-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field. It is a championship event for indoor championships, normally dominated by the best outdoor 100 metres runners. At outdoor venues it is a rare distance, at least for senior ath ...

. He blasted onto the track scene when he was the bronze medalist at the 2002

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

Indoor

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 eve ...

Championships while representing

Washington State University Washington State University (Washington State, WSU, or informally Wazzu) is a public land-grant research university with its flagship, and oldest, campus in Pullman, Washington. Founded in 1890, WSU is also one of the oldest land-grant uni ...

. Henry finished only behind silver medalist Leonard Scott and gold medalist

Justin Gatlin Justin Alexander Gatlin (born February 10, 1982) is a retired American sprinter who competed in the 60 meters, 100 meters, and 200 meters. He is the 2004 Olympic Champion in the 100 meters, the 2005 and 2017 World Champion in the 100 meters, the ...

who later tested positive for amphetamines. Talk of moving Henry up to the silver medal position went unconcluded. He would later be a favorite at the

Outdoor

Championships, but due to a muscle cramp in the 100m final Henry hobbled across the line in an unexpected 8th-place finish. Henry still remains the

record holder in the 60m (6.65), 100m (10.04w, 10.17) and 200m (20.52). At the

2003 Pan American Games The 2003 Pan American Games were held in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, from August 1 to 17, 2003. The successful bid for the games was made in the mid-1990s, when Dominican Republic had one of the highest growth rates in Latin America. Al ...

he won the bronze medal in the 100 metres, as the original winner Mickey Grimes was stripped of the gold medal after testing positive for

ephedrine Ephedrine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is often used to prevent low blood pressure during anesthesia. It has also been used for asthma, narcolepsy, and obesity but is not the preferred treatment. It is of unclear benefit in ...

. At the 2006 Commonwealth Games he finished sixth in the 100 metres and won a bronze medal in the 4 x 100 metres relay. He won a relay silver medal at the

2007 Pan American Games The 2007 Pan American Games, officially known as the XV Pan American Games, were a major continental multi-sport event that took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from July 13 to 29, 2007. A total of 5,633 athletes from 42 National Olympic C ...

and also finished 7th in the 100m. Later on in 2007 Henry would have an impressive 10th-place finish overall in the 100m dash at the 2007 World Championships in Osaka, Japan. This was the best finish by a Canadian sprinter at any major championships in the 100m since

Bruny Surin Bruny Surin (born July 12, 1967) is a Canadian former track and field athlete, winner of a gold medal in the 4×100 metres relay at the 1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known a ...

won bronze at the 1999 World Championships in Seville, Spain. He also competed at the 2008 Olympic Games without reaching the final. In

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

he competed at the 100 metres sprint and placed 4th in his heat behind

Francis Obikwelu Francis Obiorah Obikwelu, GOIH (born 22 November 1978) is a retired Nigerian-born Portuguese sprinter, who specialized in 100 metres and 200 metres. He was the 2004 Olympic silver medalist in the 100 metres. In the same race, he se ...

, Obinna Metu and

Walter Dix Walter Dix (born January 31, 1986) is a retired American sprinter who specialized in the 100 meters and 200 meters. He is the sixth-fastest 200-meter runner ever with a best of 19.53 seconds, and has broken the 10-second barrier in the 10 ...

. He improved his time to 10.33 in the quarter finals, but failed to qualify to the semi finals as he finished only in seventh place. Together with Hank Palmer, Pierre Browne and

Jared Connaughton Jared Connaughton (born July 20, 1985) is a Canadian former track athlete who specialized in the 100m and 200m. He is now a physical education cross country, and track and field coach at a private school in Fort Worth, Texas (Fort Worth Country D ...

he also competed at the 4x100 metres relay. In their qualification heat they placed second behind

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

, but in front of

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and China. Their time of 38.77 was the fourth out of sixteen participating nations in the first round and they qualified for the final. There they sprinted to a time of 38.66 seconds, which was the sixth time. Henry is now a commentator for CBC Sports.

Early years

Anson Henry attended

Dunbarton High School Dunbarton High School is located in Pickering, Ontario, Canada, and is part of the Durham District School Board. The school has students in grades 9-12 and offers a wide range of academic and extracurricular activities. Their mascot is the Sparta ...

. Mainly a basketball player through the majority of his high school years, Henry gave track and field a try in his senior year. He was successful in becoming an OFSAA 100m Bronze Medalist, and later became the Canadian National Junior Champion in the 100m dash. He had a personal best in high school of 10.40s. Later he was 1 of 9 junior athletes selected from

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

to compete at the

IAAF World Junior Championships in Athletics The World Athletics U20 Championships is a biennial world championships for the sport of athletics organised by the World Athletics, contested by athletes in the under-20 athletics age category (19 years old or younger on 31 December in the year ...

in Annecy, France. He finished in 9th place.

College career

Anson Henry received a full

athletic scholarship An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university or a private high school awarded to an individual based predominantly on his or her ability to play in a sport. Athletic scholarships are common in the United ...

to attend

. While struggling with injury throughout his early years, which delayed his flourish as a collegiate athlete until his senior year. In that year he set a new WSU 60m record of 6.65 seconds at the

Indoor

Championships and had a 3rd-place finish. He would later set the 100m school record of 10.17 as he won the 2002 Mt. SAC Relays 100m dash. With the

Pac-10 Conference The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference, that operates in the Western United States, participating in 24 sports at the NCAA Division I level. Its football teams compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS; formerly Division ...

Championships being held at WSU, Henry pulled off the double as he won both the 100m dash (10.29s, -1.4w) and set a new school record in the 200m Dash of 20.52s (-0.9w). He entered the

Outdoor

Championships as a heavy favorite, and looked great through the qualifying rounds but pulled up mid race with a hamstring cramp, leaving him crossing the line lame in an 8th-place finish. Henry's accomplishments in the year of 2002 awarded him Pac-10 Track and Field Athlete of the Year, and also

Western Region Track and Field Athlete of the Year. Henry still remains the only sprinter at WSU to be both an Indoor and Outdoor All-American.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Henry, Anson 1979 births Living people Canadian male sprinters Athletes (track and field) at the 2003 Pan American Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2007 Pan American Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics Olympic track and field athletes of Canada Athletes (track and field) at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Black Canadian track and field athletes Athletes from Toronto Pan American Games track and field athletes for Canada Pan American Games silver medalists for Canada Pan American Games bronze medalists for Canada Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for Canada Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics Pan American Games medalists in athletics (track and field) Medalists at the 2003 Pan American Games Medalists at the 2007 Pan American Games