Carmen Douma-Hussar (born March 12, 1977) is a

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 ...

middle-distance runner Middle-distance running events are track races longer than sprints, up to 3000 metres. The standard middle distances are the 800 metres, 1500 metres and mile run, although the 3000 metres may also be classified as a middle-distance event. The 1 ...

. She is a member of the Guelph Track and Field Club and is coached by

Marcus O'Sullivan Marcus O'Sullivan (born in Cork, Ireland on 22 December 1961) is an Irish retired middle-distance runner. He competed for Ireland at four Summer Olympics. After Steve Scott and John Walker, he is the third all-time by total of sub-4 minute m ...

and Albert Tschirhart. She was the silver medalist in the 1500 m 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 re ...

. Douma-Hussar was a 1500 m finalist at the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

2005 World Championships in Athletics The 10th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), were held in the Olympic Stadium, Helsinki, Finland (6 August 2005 – 14 August 2005), the site of the first IAAF ...

and the

2006 Commonwealth Games The 2006 Commonwealth Games, officially the XVIII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Melbourne 2006 (Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm 2006'' or ''Naarm 2006''), was an international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth held ...

. She represented Canada in the short race at the

IAAF World Cross Country Championships World Athletics Cross Country Championships is the most important competition in international cross country running. Formerly held annually and organised by World Athletics (formerly the IAAF), it was inaugurated in 1973, when it replaced the Int ...

six times between 2001 and 2006. Her best performance of 17th in 2004 brought Canada the team bronze medal. She has also competed at the

2007 World Championships in Athletics The 11th World Championships in Athletics, () under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), were held at Nagai Stadium in Osaka, Japan from 24 August to 2 September 2007. 200 of the IAAF's 212 member federat ...

, the

2006 IAAF World Cup The 10th IAAF World Cup in Athletics was an international track and field sporting event, held under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations, which took place on 16 and 17 September 2006 at the Olympic Stadium in Athe ...

and four editions of the

IAAF World Athletics Final The IAAF World Athletics Final was an annual track and field competition organised by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). It was inaugurated in 2003 to replace the IAAF Grand Prix Final. The competition was part of the ...

. She was a three-time NCAA champion while studying at

Villanova University Villanova University is a Private university, private Catholic church, Roman Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania. It was founded by the Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinians in 1842 and named after Thomas of Villanova, Sa ...

Career

Early life and career

Born in

Cambridge, Ontario Cambridge is a city in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, located at the confluence of the Grand River (Ontario), Grand and Speed River, Speed rivers. The city had a population of 138,479 as of the 2021 Canadian census, 202 ...

, she attended

and represented the

Villanova Wildcats The Villanova Wildcats are the athletic teams of Villanova University. They compete in the Big East (NCAA Division I) for every sport; except football and rowing where they compete in the Colonial Athletic Association (Football Championship Sub ...

in college athletics. In

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 ...

competition, she won three individual titles: in 1998 she won the NCAA indoor title in the

mile run The mile run (1,760 yards or exactly 1,609.344 metres) is a middle-distance foot race. The history of the mile run event began in England, where it was used as a distance for gambling races. It survived track and field's switch to ...

and the outdoor title over

1500 meters The 1500 metres or 1,500-metre run (typically pronounced 'fifteen-hundred metres') 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 Athletic ...

, then took another indoor mile title in 2000. She received NCAA

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

honours on nine occasions and was highly successful in the regional

Big East Conference The Big East Conference is a collegiate athletic conference that competes in NCAA Division I in ten men's sports and twelve women's sports. Headquartered in New York City, the eleven full-member schools are primarily located in Northeast and M ...

, taking fifteen individual championship victories for the Wildcats. She graduated with a major in education at the end of 2000. From 2000 to 2008 she served as a volunteer assistant coach for Villanova. Douma-Hussar made her international debut for Canada the following year at the

2001 IAAF World Cross Country Championships The 2001 IAAF World Cross Country Championships took place on March 24/25, 2001. The races were held at the Hippodrome Wellington in Ostend (Oostende), Belgium. Reports of the event were given in ''The New York Times'', in the ''Herald'', ...

, placing 69th in the short race. She improved upon this at the 2002 short race with a 53rd-place finish.Douma-Hussar Carmen
IAAF. Retrieved on 2012-05-06. In the 2002 track season she improved her indoor mile best to 4:38.02 minutes to win at the Gator Invitational then set an outdoor best of 4:37.55 minutes in Falmouth. She also set a 1500 m best of 4:14.60 minutes at the

Georgia Tech Invitational Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. She was 37th at the 2003 World Cross Country and greatly improved her track bests. She was third in the mile at both the New Balance Games and

Boston Indoor Games The New Balance Indoor Grand Prix, formerly known as the Boston Indoor Games, is an annual indoor track and field meet which is held in late January or early February at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center. It was first held in Roxbury, a n ...

, setting a best of 4:35.94 minutes. She won the 1500 m at the Harry Jerome Classic with a new personal record of 4:08.09 minutes and won the national title in that event a month later.Carmen Douma-Hussar
Tilastopaja. Retrieved on 2012-05-06.

Canadian records and world medalist

The 2004 season proved to be a breakout year for Douma-Hussar. She had her best cross country finish at the 2004 World Championships, where her 17th place helped a Canadian team including

Émilie Mondor Émilie Mondor (April 29, 1981 – September 9, 2006) was a Canadian Olympic athlete, who was a two-time national champion in the women's 5,000 metres. Early life She was born in Mascouche, Quebec in 1981. Mondor studied at McGill University, ...

Malindi Elmore Malindi Elmore (born March 13, 1980 in Kelowna, British Columbia) is a Canadian track and field athlete specialising in the middle-distance events. As of January 19, 2020 she holds the Canadian record for the marathon, running a 2:24:50. She was ...

and

Tina Connelly Tina Connelly (born August 16, 1970 in New Westminster, British Columbia) is a retired female track and field athlete from Canada, who competed in the long-distance events. She represented her native country at the 2000 Summer Olympics, fin ...

take the

bronze medal A bronze medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of bronze awarded to the third-place finisher of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The outright winner receive ...

in the short race. She won the 1500 m at the Boston Indoor Games and the

Millrose Games The Millrose Games is an annual indoor athletics meet (track and field) held each February in New York City. They started taking place at the Armory in Washington Heights in 2012, after having taken place in Madison Square Garden from 1914 to 2011 ...

and gained selection for the event at the

. She made it to the final and ran a Canadian indoor record time of 4:08.18 minutes to take the

silver medal A silver medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of, or plated with, silver awarded to the second-place finisher, or runner-up, of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc ...

behind

Kutre Dulecha Kutre Dulecha (born August 22, 1978 in Sidamo) is a middle distance runner from Ethiopia. She mainly competes in 1500 metres, where she set a world junior record in 1997. She became world indoor champion in 2004, Ethiopia's first ever women's 15 ...

. She focused solely on the 1500 m track event and travelled to compete on the European outdoor

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 events ...

circuit. She won at the

FBK Games The FBK Games is an annual track and field event at the Fanny Blankers-Koen Stadion in Hengelo, Netherlands as part of the IAAF World Challenge Meetings. It was first organized in 1981. Its name honours Fanny Blankers-Koen, who won four gold meda ...

in the Netherlands with a personal best of 4:04.85 minutes and was runner-up at the

London Grand Prix The London Diamond League, formerly known as the London Grand Prix and subsequently as the Anniversary Games, is an annual athletics event held in London, England. Previously one of the five IAAF Super Grand Prix events, it is now part of the Dia ...

. She was second at the national championships and was selected for the Canadian Olympic team for the first time. Her form peaked at the

2004 Athens Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

as she made it to the final and ran a personal record time of 4:02.31 minutes to take ninth place. She ended the season with a fifth-place finish at the

2005 IAAF World Athletics Final The 3rd IAAF World Athletics Final was held at the Stade Louis II, in Monte Carlo, Monaco on September 9, and September 10, 2005. The hammer throw event for men and women had to take place in Szombathely, Hungary on September 3 as the Monaco stad ...

. She began 2005 by breaking her second national record: her winning run of 4:28.43 minutes in New York was a Canadian indoor record for the mile. She also won the mile at the Millrose Games. Douma-Hussar was Canada's best performer at the

2005 IAAF World Cross Country Championships The 2005 IAAF World Cross Country Championships took place on March 19/20, 2005. The races were held at the Hippodrome Joseph Desjoyaux in Saint-Galmier near Saint-Étienne, France. Reports of the event were given in ''The New York Times'', in ...

, coming 25th in the short race. She won the 1500 m outdoor national title and went on to take ninth place at the

. Two weeks after the final she ran a life-time best of 4:02.29 minutes at the

Rieti Meeting The Rieti Meeting is an annual athletics event at the Stadio Raul Guidobaldi in Rieti, Italy that takes place in late August or early September. Previously one of the IAAF Grand Prix events, it is now part of the IAAF World Challenge. It was first ...

. At the

2006 IAAF World Athletics Final The 4th IAAF World Athletics Final was held at the Gottlieb-Daimler-Stadion in Stuttgart, Germany on September 9 and September 10, 2006. Results Men Women References External linksOfficial 4th IAAF World Athletics Final Site {{DEFAULTSO ...

she ran in both the 1500 m and the

3000 meters The 3000 metres or 3000-metre run is a track running event, also commonly known as the "3K" or "3K run", where 7.5 laps are run around an outdoor 400 m track, or 15 laps around a 200 m indoor track. It is debated whether the 3000m shoul ...

, coming fourth in the former event and setting a best of 8:53.83 minutes in the latter. In her first major road outing, she won the women's title at the

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 N ...

in September ahead of

Amy Rudolph Amy Lynn Rudolph (born September 18, 1973) is a retired United States, American middle-distance running, middle- and long-distance runner who competed mostly in the 5000 meters. She represented her country at two consecutive Summer Olympics, starti ...

Commonwealth Games and 2007 World Championships

After two indoor wins over the mile in Boston and New York, she headed to Australia and won the 1500 m at the

Melbourne Track Classic Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metropoli ...

. However, she was not in peak form for the

held in the city that month and she lost out in a tactical 1500 m, coming in fifth place. In the final short race to be held at the

2006 IAAF World Cross Country Championships The 2006 IAAF World Cross Country Championships took place on April 1/2, 2006. The races were held at the Umi-no-nakamichi Seaside Park in Fukuoka, Japan, Japan's National Cross Country Course which is the permanent residence of the annual Fukuo ...

, she managed 22nd place and the removal of the event from future programmes brought an end to Douma-Hussar's participation at the competition. On the outdoor track circuit she had a season's best of 4:03.82 for the 1500 m at the

Meeting Gaz de France Meeting de Paris (formerly known as the Meeting Areva and Meeting Gaz de France) is an annual track and field meeting at the Stade Sébastien Charléty in Paris, France. Previously one of the IAAF Golden League events, it is now part of the Diamon ...

in Paris and won the national title. She was seventh in the event at the

and sixth at the

. In 2007, with a year's best run of 4:05.91 minutes, she was chosen for the

, but was eliminated in the first round. Despite this disappointment, she ran a lifetime best of 4:26.76 minutes for the mile two weeks later at the

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 L ...

in Belgium and came sixth at the

2007 IAAF World Athletics Final The 5th IAAF World Athletics Final was held at the Gottlieb-Daimler-Stadion in Stuttgart, Germany on September 22 and September 23, 2007. Results Men Women See also *2007 in athletics (track and field) References ;Results2007 IAAF World ...

. She also had her second career win at the Fifth Avenue Mile.

Late career

Douma-Hussar defeated

Korene Hinds Korene Hinds (born 19 October 1976) is a Jamaican long-distance runner who specializes in the 3000 metre steeplechase. Competition record Personal bests Outdoor *800 metres – 2:03.09 min (2010) *1500 metres – 4:13.68 min (2010) * 3000 met ...

to lift the women's title at the 2008

NACAC Cross Country Championships The NACAC Cross Country Championships is an annual regional cross country running competition for athletes representing member nations of the North America, Central America and Caribbean Athletic Association (NACAC). The event was inaugurated in 2 ...

and won at the Emerald Nuts Midnight Run, but she missed out on the Olympics as her track performances began to decline (she had season's bests of 4:09.61 min for the 1500 m and 4:36.29 min for the mile). She became pregnant in late 2008 and gave birth to her first daughter (Pippa) in June 2009. She returned to action in 2010 and began to compete in longer distance races. She won the Canadian 10K road title in October.Gambaccini, Peter (2011-01-13)
A Brief Chat With Carmen Douma-Hussar
''

Runner's World ''Runner's World'' is a globally circulated monthly magazine for runners of all skills sets, published by Hearst in Easton, Pennsylvania, in the United States. Before its acquisition by Hearst, it was founded and published by Rodale, Inc. in E ...

. Retrieved on 2012-05-06. She still had success on the indoor track in 2011 with runner-up finishes in the 1500 m and mile at the Millrose Games, Boston Indoor Games and New Balance Games.

Personal bests

800 meters The 800 metres, or 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 since th ...

- 2:02.43 min (2004) *1000 meters - 2:36.26 min (2005) *

- 4:02.29 min (2005) *

indoors - 4:08.18 min (2004) NR *

Mile run The mile run (1,760 yards or exactly 1,609.344 metres) is a middle-distance foot race. The history of the mile run event began in England, where it was used as a distance for gambling races. It survived track and field's switch to ...

- 4:26.76 min (2007) *Mile run indoors - 4:28.43 min (2005) NR *

- 8:53.83 min (2005)

References

External links

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Douma-Hussar, Carmen Living people 1977 births Canadian female middle-distance runners Canadian female long-distance runners Sportspeople from Cambridge, Ontario Track and field athletes from Ontario Villanova Wildcats women's track and field athletes Olympic track and field athletes of Canada Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics Commonwealth Games competitors for Canada Athletes (track and field) at the 2006 Commonwealth Games World Athletics Championships athletes for Canada