Aries Merritt (born July 24, 1985) 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 eve ...
athlete who specializes in the
110 metre hurdles
The 110 metres hurdles, or 110-metre hurdles, is a hurdling track and field event for men. It is included in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympic Games. The female counterpart is the 100 metres hurdles. As part of a racing event, ten hur ...
, and currently holds 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 ...
in that event with a time of 12.80 s set on September 7, 2012. He won the gold medal in the 110 metre hurdles at the
2012 Summer Olympics in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
.
Background
Born in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
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, subdivision_name ...
,
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...
, he moved to Marietta, Georgia at a young age, attending
Joseph Wheeler High School
Wheeler High School is located in northeast Cobb County, Georgia. It is near the U.S. city of Marietta, about 15 miles (24 km) northwest of downtown Atlanta. The school has been in operation since 1965. It is a public high school, accredited by t ...
, where he was teammates with
Reggie Witherspoon. Merritt ran for the
University of Tennessee
The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state ...
from 2003 to 2006 and had a successful college career, a seven-time All-American. He took the 110 meter hurdles gold at the
2004 World Junior Championships and finished sixth at the
2006 World Athletics Final. Also in 2006, he won the
NCAA Championships
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 and ...
,
Indoors and
Outdoors and was undefeated in all hurdles events that year. He broke
Willie Gault
Willie James Gault (born September 5, 1960) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons with the Chicago Bears and Los Angeles Raiders. Considered one of the ...
's
Tennessee Volunteers
The Tennessee Volunteers and Lady Volunteers are the 20 male and female varsity intercollegiate athletics programs that represent the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Volunteers compete in Division I of the National Collegi ...
hurdles record. His victory at the NCAA Championships in 13.21 s was the second fastest ever collegiate time in the United States, behind only
Renaldo Nehemiah
Renaldo Nehemiah (born March 24, 1959) is a retired American track and field athlete who specialized in the 110 m hurdles. He was ranked number one in the world for four straight years, and is a former world record holder. Nehemiah is the first m ...
. He reached the
World Athletics Final in 2008, finishing in fourth.
Merritt is the first hurdler to ever win gold in the US Indoor Championship, the World Indoor Championship (Istanbul, Turkey), the US Olympic Trials, and the Olympic Games all in the same year.
Professional athletics career
2011
In the final of the
110m hurdles at the 2011 World Championships in Athletics, Merritt was initially classified 6th, with a time of 13.67 s. After
Dayron Robles
Dayron Robles (born 19 November 1986) is a Cuban track and field athlete who specialises in the 110 metre hurdles.
He won his first major medal (a silver) in the 60 metres hurdles at the 2006 World Indoor Championships. He finished the 2006 sea ...
was disqualified, Merritt was promoted to 5th. His season's best was 13.12 s, achieved in Eugene, Oregon and Oslo.
2012
Merritt began the 2012 campaign by altering his approach to the first hurdle, switching from eight to seven steps. In an interview he stated, "
twas pretty risky to make a change like that, but something had to be done if I was going to compete with (Liu Xiang of China and Dayron Robles of Cuba). The change allows me to maintain my momentum going into the first barrier." Merrit's change was highly successful for the 2012 indoor season as he became the indoor world champion in the 60 meters hurdles at the
2012 World Indoor Championships in
Istanbul
)
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code = 34000 to 34990
, area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side)
, registration_plate = 34
, blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD
, blank_i ...
. In the final, he beat
Liu Xiang and
Pascal Martinot-Lagarde with a time of 7.44 s.
2012 Summer Olympics
At the
Olympic trials in Oregon, Merritt won the 110 meter hurdles final in a world leading time of 12.93 s, making the Olympic team for the first time. Merritt subsequently matched the time at two consecutive
Diamond League events, at Crystal Palace and Monaco, winning both races.
At the
2012 Olympic Games in London, Merritt began by running the fastest qualifying time in the heats with a time of 13.07 s. In the semi-finals, he was again dominant with a time of 12.94 s. In the final,
Dayron Robles
Dayron Robles (born 19 November 1986) is a Cuban track and field athlete who specialises in the 110 metre hurdles.
He won his first major medal (a silver) in the 60 metres hurdles at the 2006 World Indoor Championships. He finished the 2006 sea ...
and Merritt got the fastest starts but Merritt pulled ahead at hurdle 3. He continued to a personal best of 12.92 s and a 0.12 s win over reigning world champion
Jason Richardson
Jason Anthoney Richardson (born January 20, 1981) is an American former professional basketball player who played 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Richardson was taken by the Golden State Warriors as the fifth overall pic ...
.
World record
On September 7, 2012, at the final Diamond League meet (
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 Le ...
) in Brussels, Belgium, Merritt ran a time of 12.80 s in the 110 meter hurdles, shattering the old world record of 12.87 s held by Dayron Robles. Merritt's performance was the largest drop in the world record for 110 meter hurdles (0.07 s) since
Nehemiah
Nehemiah is the central figure of the Book of Nehemiah, which describes his work in rebuilding Jerusalem during the Second Temple period. He was governor of Persian Judea under Artaxerxes I of Persia (465–424 BC). The name is pronounced o ...
in 1981. Merrit ran consistently throughout the 2012 season. The following are his times that lead-up to his world record performance in the 110 meter hurdles:
2013
Merritt finished 6th at the
World Championships
A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
. After the competition, he felt very ill and was diagnosed with collapsing
focal segmental glomerulosclerosis
Focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) is a histopathologic finding of scarring (sclerosis) of glomeruli and damage to renal podocytes.Rosenberg, Avi Z.; Kopp, Jeffrey B. (2017-03-07). "Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis". ''Clinical Journal o ...
, a rare congenital
kidney
The kidneys are two reddish-brown bean-shaped organs found in vertebrates. They are located on the left and right in the retroperitoneal space, and in adult humans are about in length. They receive blood from the paired renal arteries; blo ...
disease, aggravated by a
parvovirus
Parvoviruses are a family of animal viruses that constitute the family ''Parvoviridae''. They have linear, single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) genomes that typically contain two genes encoding for a replication initiator protein, called NS1, and the p ...
that had attacked his kidneys and
bone marrow. After several months of medical treatment, he was eventually able to return to competition on the following year, albeit far from his previous registers.
2015
Merrit's recovery from his kidney problems was enough to allow him to finish third in the
USATF Outdoor Championships in June, obtaining a place for the
World Championship
A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
.
On 28 August he won the bronze medal in the 110m hurdles, just four days before undergoing a scheduled kidney transplant.
2017
He won the
2017 IAAF Diamond League
The 2017 Diamond League was the eighth season of the annual series of outdoor track and field meetings, organised by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). It is the first to feature the new championship-style system in wh ...
110m hurdles in
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
on June 8, 2017
Personal bests
International competition record
References
External links
*
*
Aries Merritt at
DyeStat
DyeStat was a website self-described as "The Internet Home of High School Track & Field". It was founded in 1998 by John Dye, and featured his wife (Donna Dye) as the features editor, senior editor Steve Underwood, assistant editor Dave Devine, tw ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Merritt, Aries
1985 births
Living people
Track and field athletes from Chicago
Track and field athletes from Georgia (U.S. state)
American male hurdlers
African-American male track and field athletes
Olympic male hurdlers
Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field
Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics
World Athletics Championships athletes for the United States
World Athletics Championships medalists
World Athletics record holders
Tennessee Volunteers men's track and field athletes
Kidney transplant recipients
Diamond League winners
USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners
USA Indoor Track and Field Championships winners
World Athletics Indoor Championships winners
21st-century African-American sportspeople
20th-century African-American people