Hazel Clark

{{Short description|American middle-distance runner (born 1977)}}

{{Infobox sportsperson

| headercolor =

| name = Hazel Clark

| image = Hazel Clark 2014.jpg

| imagesize =

| caption = Clark in Fiji in April 2014

| birth_name =

| fullname = Hazel Mae Clark

| nickname = "Peachy"

| nationality = {{USA}}

| residence = Bermuda

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1977|10|3|mf=y}}

| birth_place = Livingston, New Jersey

| death_date =

| death_place =

| height = {{convert|5|ft|10|in|m|abbr=on}}

| weight = {{convert|121|lbs|kg|abbr=on}}

| website = {{URL|clarkfamontop.com}}

| country =

| sport = Track and field

| event = 800 meters

| collegeteam = University of Florida

| club =

| team =

| turnedpro = 1999

| coach =

| retired =

| coaching =

| worlds =

| regionals =

| nationals = Six national titles

| olympics = Olympic finalist

| highestranking = 6th in the world

| pb =

| medaltemplates =

}}

Hazel Mae Clark (born October 3, 1977) is an American middle-distance runner who specializes in the 800 meters middle distance race. She was a member of the U.S. Olympic team in 2000, 2004 and 2008. She has won six national titles and two USA Olympic Trials events during her career.

Early life and education

Clark was born in Livingston, New Jersey.[http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=PI&s_site=philly&p_multi=PI&p_theme=realcities&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=1244C71EB7129A30&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM "Women's 800 meters features a full field"], The Philadelphia Inquirer, July 1, 2008. Accessed February 25, 2011. "Hazel Clark, a 2004 Olympian from Livingston, N.J., was the winner in 1 minute, 59.82 seconds." She is the daughter of inner-city educator Joe Louis Clark, who inspired the film Lean on Me, and the sister-in-law of fellow Olympian Jearl Miles-Clark. Joetta Clark Diggs is her older sister. Hazel Clark, her sister, and her sister-in-law made history when they swept the 2000 Olympic trials 800 meters.{{cite web |last1=Hymans |first1=Richard |title=The History of the United States Olympic Trials – Track & Field |url=http://www.legacy.usatf.org/statistics/champions/OlympicTrials/HistoryOfTheOlympicTrials.pdf |publisher=USA Track & Field |date=2008 |access-date=December 21, 2019 |archive-date=March 27, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160327114422/http://www.legacy.usatf.org/statistics/champions/OlympicTrials/HistoryOfTheOlympicTrials.pdf |url-status=dead }}

Clark attended Columbia High School. She accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where she was a member of the Florida Gators track and field team and was coached by her brother J.J. While at Florida, she was undefeated in SEC competition and won five NCAA titles. Clark graduated from the University of Florida with a bachelor's degree in sociology in 2001. She was honored for her college athletic record when she was inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as a "Gator Great" in 2012.F Club, Hall of Fame, [http://www.gatorfclub.org/hall-of-fame/greats Gator Greats]. Retrieved December 18, 2014."[http://www.gatorzone.com/story.php?id=21249 Florida Announces 2012 UF Athletic Hall of Fame Inductees] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131019081452/http://www.gatorzone.com/story.php?id=21249 |date=2013-10-19 }}," GatorZone.com (September 7, 2011). Retrieved September 24, 2011.

Career

Clark finished seventh at the 2000 Olympic Games. At the 2001 World Championships, she did not progress past the first round due to injury. In 2001, she was given a warning for using pseudoephedrine.{{Cite web |url=http://www.legacy.usatf.org/about/legal/antidoping/DQs.asp |title=USATF - Anti-Doping - Disqualifications and Public Warnings |access-date=December 21, 2019 |archive-date=June 8, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190608022426/http://www.usatf.org/about/legal/antidoping/DQs.asp |url-status=dead }}

Shortly before the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Clark suffered severe burns on her back caused by an accident which limited her training.{{cite news |url=https://www.runnersworld.com/races-places/a20795141/a-brief-chat-with-hazel-clark/ |title=Hazel Clark |work=Runners World |date=17 July 2008 |first=Lisa |last=Jhung |access-date=23 September 2024}} She did not proceed from her first-round heat in the 800 meters. She then had two good seasons with an eighth place at the 2005 World Championships, seventh place at the 2005 and 2006 World Athletics Final, and a sixth place at the 2006 World Cup.

In 2008, she won her second U.S. Olympic Trials 800 meters final held in Eugene, Oregon, and competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics.{{Cite web |url=http://www.nbcolympics.com/trackandfield/news/newsid=143720.html |title=U.S. Olympic Trials Day 4 results |access-date=July 18, 2008 |archive-date=August 1, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080801180018/http://www.nbcolympics.com/trackandfield/news/newsid=143720.html |url-status=dead }}

Her personal best time is 1:57.99 minutes, achieved in July 2005 at the Bislett Games in Oslo.

Clark has appeared in three global Nike ads appearing in fashion magazines, stores, and billboards. She has been marketed by Nike as a spokesmodel throughout her career.

She is the Director of Global Sales for the Bermuda Tourism Authority.