Kerron Stephon Clement (born October 31, 1985) is a Trinidadian-born 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 competes in the

400-meter hurdles The 400 metres hurdles is a track and field hurdling event. The event has been on the Summer Olympics, Olympic athletics (sport), athletics programme since 1900 Summer Olympics, 1900 for men and since 1984 Summer Olympics, 1984 for women. On a s ...

and

400-meter sprint The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor running track, it is on ...

. He held the indoor world record in the 400-meter sprint, having broken Michael Johnson's mark in 2005. Clement won the hurdles at the 2016 Summer Olympics in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of the same name, Brazil's List of Brazilian states by population, third-most populous state, and the List of largest citi ...

and 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 federa ...

and took the silver behind Angelo Taylor at the

2008 Beijing Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nati ...

. He retained his world title at the 2009 World Championships. He is a frequent member of the American

4x400-meter relay Four-wheel drive, also called 4×4 ("four by four") or 4WD, refers to a two-axled vehicle drivetrain capable of providing torque to all of its wheels simultaneously. It may be full-time or on-demand, and is typically linked via a transfer case ...

and is a two-time world champion and Olympic gold medalist in the event. As a junior athlete, he set a championship record at the 2004 World Junior Championships and as a University of Florida Gator won back-to-back

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 and ...

titles in 2004/2005. He quickly progressed on the senior circuit, taking the hurdles title at the

USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships The USA Track & Field Outdoor Championships is an annual track and field competition organized by USA Track & Field, which serves as the American national championships for the sport. Since the year 1992, in the years which feature a Summer Olym ...

in both 2005 and 2006. He was fourth in his first global appearance at the 2005 World Championships and won his first global gold at 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 Ath ...

Career

Clement was born in

Port of Spain Port of Spain ( Spanish: ''Puerto España''), officially the City of Port of Spain (also stylized Port-of-Spain), is the capital of Trinidad and Tobago and the third largest municipality, after Chaguanas and San Fernando. The city has a munic ...

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, small ...

. His family moved to the United States in 1998, where he became a successful high school athlete at La Porte High School in La Porte,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. He won both 110 and

at the

USATF USA Track & Field (USATF) is the United States national governing body for the sports of track and field, cross country running, road running and racewalking (known as the sport of athletics outside the US). The USATF was known between 1979 and ...

Youth Athletics Championships. He also won the (high school) National Scholastic Championship in the 110-meter high hurdles in 2002, and finished fifth in that same event his senior year in 2003. He won the 400-meter hurdles at the 2003 National Scholastic meet. Clement accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

in Gainesville, Florida, where he ran for coach

Mike Holloway Michael Dwayne Holloway (born c. 1959) is an American college track and field coach. Holloway is the current head coach of the Florida Gators track and field and Gators cross country programs of the University of Florida. He is best known for ...

's Florida Gators track and field team in

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

(NCAA) competition in 2004 and 2005. At the end of his freshman year in 2004, he won the NCAA outdoor championships in the 400-meter hurdles (a feat he would repeat in 2005). Clement became a U.S. citizen in June 2004 and was eligible to compete for a spot on the U.S. Olympic team, but instead opted to skip the Olympic Trials in favor of competing at the

2004 World Junior Championships in Athletics The 2004 World Junior Championships in Athletics were held in Grosseto, Italy on 12–18 July. Results Men Women Medal table Participation According to an unofficial count through an unofficial result list, 1261 athletes from 168 count ...

. At the World Junior Championships in July, he won the gold medal in the 400-meter hurdles in a championship record time of 48.51 seconds. Clement also ran a leg for the American

team and set a world junior record of 3:01.09. On March 12, 2005, representing the University of Florida, he broke the indoor world record for the 400-meter sprint at the NCAA indoor championships in

Randal Tyson Track Center The Randal Tyson Track Center is a 5,500-seat indoor track in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Built in 2000, it is home to the University of Arkansas Razorbacks track and field teams. It was also home for one year to the semi-pro Arkansas Stars. The fac ...

in Fayetteville, Arkansas with a time of 44.57 seconds. His split at 200-meter was 21.08 seconds. The record was held for ten years previously by Michael Johnson at 44.63 seconds. Afterwards, Clement anchored Florida's 4x400-meter indoor relay to a time of 3:03.51. Clement set a personal best and 2005 world leading performance in the 400-meter hurdles with a 47.24 seconds, winning the 2005 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships title at

Carson, California Carson is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, in the South Bay region of Los Angeles, located south of downtown Los Angeles and approximately away from Los Angeles International Airport. Incorporated on February 20, 1968, ...

. This was the fastest time posted for the 400-meter hurdles in seven years. He opted to turn professional in the summer of 2005 and, while he no longer represented the University of Florida he continued to live and train in Gainesville. Clement faded during the

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 ...

Helsinki, Finland Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the capital, primate, and most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of Uusimaa in southern Finland, and has a population of . The city ...

and missed out on the medals, finishing fourth. He represented the United States at the

and won the hurdles title ahead of

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

L. J. van Zyl Louis Jacobus van Zyl (born 20 July 1985), better known as L. J. van Zyl, is a South African athlete competing in the 400 metre hurdles. He is the South African record holder in the event with a personal best of 47.66 seconds, which he ach ...

. Clement earned a gold medal in the 400-meter hurdles at the 2007 World Championship in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...

. His time of 47.61 seconds was a season's best, and he was ranked the number 1 400-meter hurdler in the world. In the fall of 2007, he decided to leave Gainesville, and moved to California to train under legendary track coach Bob Kersee to prepare for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.''Track & Field News'', June 2008 (pp.16-18), feature "T&FN Interview: Kerron Clement"; accessed March 4, 2012 Clement qualified in the 400-meter hurdles for the 2008 Summer Olympics on June 29, 2008, at the Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon. Clement advanced to the final where he was a slight favourite over compatriot Angelo Taylor, but Taylor ran a personal best time to win the gold medal. Clement came second for silver, and later won a gold medal in the 4x400-meter relay despite not racing in the final. He closed the year on the top of the podium with a gold medal at the

2008 IAAF World Athletics Final The 6th IAAF World Athletics Final was held at the Mercedes-Benz Arena in Stuttgart, Germany on September 13 and September 14, 2008. A number of road races also took place on the second day of competition. There were seven different starting po ...

. The following year he competed at the

2009 World Championships in Athletics The 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics () were held in Berlin, Germany from 15–23 August 2009. The majority of events took place in the Olympiastadion, while the marathon and racewalking events started and finished at the Brandenbur ...

. Reigning Olympic champion, Taylor, was eliminated in the heats. Clement won the gold medal in a season's best time of 47.91, beating

Javier Culson Javier Culson Pérez (born 25 July 1984) is a Puerto Rican athlete and Olympiad bronze medalist who specialises in the 400-metre hurdles. After becoming involved with the discipline in his late teen years, he entered the podium in some regiona ...

and

Bershawn Jackson Bershawn D. Jackson (born May 8, 1983) is an American athlete, who mainly competes in the 400 m hurdles, but also is a 400 m runner. At the 2008 Summer Olympics, Bershawn "Batman" Jackson won a bronze medal in the 400 m hurdles. ...

to the title. He took another gold at the 2009 IAAF World Athletics Final, which was the last edition of the competition. In 2011 he started off the outdoor season well, running a 48.74 on May 7, but he failed to improve on that time the rest of the year. As the two-time defending champion, Clement received an automatic entry to the 13th IAAF World Championships in Daegu, South Korea, but his time of 52.11 on 30 August was not good enough to advance to the finals. Clement finished 3rd in the 400 metres hurdles in 48.44 at 2015 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships to qualify for the

2015 World Championships in Athletics The 2015 IAAF World Championships ( zh, 第十五届世界田径锦标赛), the fifteenth edition of the IAAF World Championships, were held from 22 to 30 August at the National Stadium in Beijing, China. Forty-three nations won medals, 144 of ...

Personal bests

*All information from IAAF profile. Last updated October 15, 2008

Personal life

On October 11, 2019,

National Coming Out Day National Coming Out Day (NCOD) is an annual LGBT awareness day observed on October 11, to support lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people ( the LGBT community, sometimes also called the queer community) in "coming out of the closet". Fi ...

, Clement

came out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBT people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. Framed and debated as a privacy issue, coming out of ...

as gay during a Nike event, saying "It's who I am and it's what made me become the athlete I am today." He had struggled with his sexuality since his teens and decided it was time “to be free.”

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Clement, Kerron 1985 births Living people Sportspeople from Port of Spain Track and field athletes from Houston American male hurdlers American male sprinters Trinidad and Tobago male hurdlers Trinidad and Tobago male sprinters African-American male track and field athletes Olympic male hurdlers Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field Olympic silver medalists for the United States in track and field Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics World Athletics Championships medalists World Athletics Championships athletes for the United States Pan American Games track and field athletes for the United States Pan American Games bronze medalists for the United States Pan American Games medalists in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 2015 Pan American Games World Athletics indoor record holders Florida Gators men's track and field athletes Gay sportsmen American LGBT sportspeople LGBT track and field athletes Trinidad and Tobago emigrants to the United States La Porte High School (Texas) alumni United States collegiate record holders in athletics (track and field) Diamond League winners USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners World Athletics Indoor Championships winners World Athletics Championships winners IAAF World Athletics Final winners Medalists at the 2015 Pan American Games LGBT sportspeople from Trinidad and Tobago 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American people

Career

Personal bests

Personal life

See also

References

External links