Damien Marsh (born 28 March 1971) is a former
Australian 100 metre and 200 metre sprint champion.
A native of
Goondiwindi
Goondiwindi () is a rural town and locality in the Goondiwindi Region, Queensland, Australia. It is on the border of Queensland and New South Wales. In the , Goondiwindi had a population of 6,355 people.
Geography
Goondiwindi is on the MacInt ...
,
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, establishe ...
, Marsh finest moment as a sprinter was winning the 1995 100 metre
IAAF Grand Prix Final
The IAAF Grand Prix Final was an athletics competition featuring track and field events staged by the International Association of Athletics Federations. It was first held in 1985 and replaced in 2003 by the IAAF World Athletics Final. For the most ...
in
Monaco
Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...
in a time of 10.13, defeating a field of the world's top sprinters. This bettered his own Australian national record of 10.16 set in July 1994 in
Oslo
Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population ...
. He had broken
Gerrard Keating's national record (of 10.22) in February 1993 in Melbourne with a time of 10.19. He also ran a personal best in the 200 in Monaco, 20.32.
Weeks earlier to running 10.13, Marsh led Australia to a silver medal in the 4X100m sprint relay in a national record time of 38.17 at the
1995 IAAF World Championships. Marsh narrowly missed out in reaching the 100m final with a 9th best 10.20 time in the event semi-finals. He finished 1995 ranked 9th in the world in the 200m. After suffering a ruptured
achilles tendon
The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcaneus ( ...
injury during training for the
1996 Atlanta Olympics however, he never returned to such world-class form.
Marsh made the final of the
1993 World Championships 200m event (along with
Dean Capobianco, coming 8th with a time of 20.56. He finished 5th in the 200m at the 1994
Goodwill Games with the same time. He won the Australian men's open athletics championships 100m event in 1994 and 1996 with times of 10.39 and 10.43, respectively. He was 1993 and 1998 200m champion as well with a wind-aided 20.29 and 21.34, respectively.
Personal bests
*
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 ...
– 10.13 (1995)
*
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 ...
– 20.32 (1995)
that Australian 4 × 100 m record was actually set in the semi of the Gothenburg (IAAF world champs 1995) meet
Sources
''Australian Broadcasting Corporation'' 2000 Olympics profile page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marsh, Damien
1971 births
Living people
People from Queensland
Australian male sprinters
World Athletics Championships medalists
Athletes (track and field) at the 1994 Commonwealth Games
Athletes (track and field) at the 1998 Commonwealth Games
Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics
Commonwealth Games silver medallists for Australia
World Athletics Indoor Championships medalists
Competitors at the 1994 Goodwill Games
Medallists at the 1994 Commonwealth Games