JaMeesia Ford

JaMeesia Ford
Personal information
NationalityAmerican
Born (2005-01-26) 26 January 2005 (age 19)
Sport
SportAthletics
EventSprint
Achievements and titles
Personal bests100m: 11.50 (Greensboro, 2022)
200m: 22.08 (Eugene, 2024)
400m: 51.33 (Clemson, 2024)
Indoors
200m: 22.34 (Boston, 2024) NU20R
300m: 35.83 (Clemson, 2023) WU20R
Medal record
Women's athletics
Representing  United States
Pan American U20 Championships
Gold medal – first place 2023 Mayagüez 4x400 m mixed relay

JaMeesia Ford (born 26 January 2005) is an American track and field athlete who competes as a sprinter. In March 2024, she became the NCAA 200 metres indoor champion. She is also the American national under-20 indoor record holder over 200 metres and is world under-20 record holder over 300 metres.[1]

Early life

Originally from Hampton, Virginia, Ford started running at nine years-old. She is a member of Fayetteville Flyers in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Ford attended Jack Britt High School. She won gold in the 200m and 400m races at the N.C. High School Athletic Association 4-A Mideast Regional Championships.[2] She also won gold in the 200 metres at the AAU Junior Olympic Games in Greensboro, North Carolina in 2019 aged 14 years-old.[3]

Career

Ford was a gold medalist in the mixed 4x400m relay at the 2023 Pan American U20 Athletics Championships in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico in August 2023.[4]

In Indianapolis in December 2023, Ford ran the fastest American indoor 300 metres ever by a U20 woman, running 35.83, eclipsing the 36.12 run by Sydney McLaughlin in 2017. It was the fourth-fastest indoor time ever by an American woman and placed her equal seventh on the women's world all-time indoor performer list.[5]

In February 2024 at the Tiger Paw International in Clemson, South Carolina, Ford ran the second fastest U20 200m indoor race of all time, and fourth fastest all-time collegiate indoor time of 22.36 seconds. It also set the fastest American U20 indoor record, surpassing the 22.40 set by Bianca Knight in 2008. At the same meet, she ran a 51.33 personal best for the 400 metres.[6]

Competing for the University of South Carolina at the NCAA Indoor Championships in Boston, Massachusetts, she won the 200 metres final in a time of 22.34 seconds.[7][8]

She lowered her personal best to 22.11 seconds for the 200 metres at the SEC Outdoor Championships in Gainesville, Florida on 11 May 2024.[9] She ran 22.08 to finish second in the 200m at the 2024 NCAA Championships final in Eugene, Oregon.[10]

References

  1. ^ "JaMeesia Ford". World Athletics. 10 March 2024.
  2. ^ Baxley, Rodd. "'It kind of runs in my blood': Jack Britt's JaMeesia Ford brings the show to the track". Fayetteville Observer. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
  3. ^ "Jameesia Ford Wins By Just Thousandths Of A Second - Day 7 Recap". Flo Track. 3 August 2019. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
  4. ^ "USA, Costa Rica and Nicaragua make history at Pan American U20 Championships". World Athletics. 7 August 2023. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
  5. ^ "FORD'S SPEEDY 300 EARNS HER USATF ATHLETE OF THE WEEK HONORS". usatf. December 15, 2023. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
  6. ^ "JAMEESIA FORD RUNS AMERICAN U20 INDOOR 200 RECORD 22.36, LAMARA DISTIN HIGH JUMPS 6-5.50 (1.97M) AT TIGER PAW INVITATIONAL". Runnerspace. 11 February 2024. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
  7. ^ "Women's 200m Final". Watch Athletics. March 9, 2024. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
  8. ^ "Williams, Ramsden and Neugebauer among winners at NCAA Indoor Championships". World Athletics. 10 March 2024. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
  9. ^ Jacks, Bradley (May 11, 2024). "Lyston runs personal best 10.91 for 100m gold at SEC Outdoor Championships; Pryce just misses Jamaican record with 49.32 to win 400m title". sportsmax. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  10. ^ Mulkeen, John (June 8, 2024). "Pryce, Long and Jones impress in sprints at NCAA Championships". World Athletics. Retrieved 8 June 2024.