Savatheda Fynes (born October 17, 1974) is a track and field sprint athlete, competing internationally for

Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to 88% of the ar ...

. She is an Olympic gold medalist in the

4 x 100 meter relay 4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures. In mathematics Four is the smallest c ...

race. Some sources spell her first name "Sevatheda."

Career

She graduated Physiology and Exercise Science at Michigan State University,

East Lansing East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Most of the city lies within Ingham County with a smaller portion extending north into Clinton County. At the 2020 Census the population was 47,741. Located directly east of the state capital ...

, Michigan, USA. She missed the 2001 World Championships due to injury. She had a minor car accident prior to the 2000 Olympic trials, which limited her training. At the World Championships in 1999 she was eliminated in semifinals due to an injured hip flexor. In 1996 a hamstring injury kept her out of the 100m at the Atlanta Games. She was a member of the

4x100m relay team that won gold at the 1999 World Championships. After that performance the team of Fynes, Pauline Davis-Thompson, Debbie Ferguson,

Chandra Sturrup Chandra Sturrup (born September 12, 1971) is a Bahamian track and field sprint athlete. Career She is a 100m specialist and the Bahamian record holder for the women's 100m with a personal best o ...

and Eldece Clark-Lewis were dubbed the Golden Girls. When they won the relay again at the Sydney Olympics they showed the world why they had earned that name. The girls returned home from Sydney to a six-day fanfare of festivities in their honor, from receptions and parades to monetary awards and land grants. Central Bank has even been commissioned to mint a commemorative gold coin to honour their victory. She earned an athletic scholarship to

Southern University at New Orleans Southern University at New Orleans (also known as SUNO) is a public historically black university in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is a member of the Southern University System and the Thurgood Marshall College Fund. History Southern University ...

, but later transferred to

Eastern Michigan University Eastern Michigan University (EMU, Eastern Michigan or simply Eastern), is a public research university in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Founded in 1849 as Michigan State Normal School, the school was the fourth normal school established in the United Sta ...

and then to Michigan State University. She was forced to sit out the 1996 season because she was a transfer. She attended an indoor meet that year and stayed in a hotel room paid for by Michigan State. That being a violation, she lost her final season of eligibility in 1998, and her coach lost her job.

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 ...

: 10.91 seconds in Lausanne 1999 *

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 ...

: 7.01 seconds in Maebashi 1999 *

50 metres 50 metres, or 50-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field. It is a relatively uncommon non-championship event for indoor track and field, normally dominated by the best outdoor 100 metres runners. At outdoor athletics competitions it is ...

: 6.05 seconds in Liévin 2000

Achievements

External links

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Bahamas Olympic Bio

Picture of Savatheda Fynes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fynes, Savatheda 1974 births Living people Bahamian female sprinters Athletes (track and field) at the 1996 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2003 Pan American Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2002 Commonwealth Games Competitors at the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games Olympic athletes of the Bahamas Olympic gold medalists for the Bahamas Olympic silver medalists for the Bahamas Pan American Games competitors for the Bahamas Commonwealth Games gold medallists for the Bahamas Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for the Bahamas Michigan State Spartans women's track and field athletes Southern Lady Jaguars track and field athletes Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics Eastern Michigan Eagles women's track and field athletes World Athletics Championships medalists Medalists at the 2000 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists in athletics (track and field) Olympic silver medalists in athletics (track and field) Goodwill Games medalists in athletics World Athletics Championships winners Competitors at the 1998 Goodwill Games Central American and Caribbean Games medalists in athletics Olympic female sprinters