Magnolia Howell
{{Short description|Trinidadian sprinter and artist}}
{{Infobox sportsperson
| name = Magnolia Howell
| birth_name =
| birth_date =
| birth_place = Sacramento, California{{cite web |title=Perseverance And Balance In Athletic Performance… In Life {{!}} CHARM |url=https://charmaustin.com/athletic-performance/ |website=CHARM Austin |access-date=30 November 2023 |date=24 July 2020}}
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| nationality = {{flagg|cncie|TTO}}
| sport = Athletics
| event = 100 metres, 200 metres, 400 metres{{Tilastopaja|41519|sex=f}}
| club = Team Bing
Nike, Inc.{{cite web |last1=Howell |first1=Magnolia |title=Stadium Lights & Running Spikes: TRACK SEASON FUNDRAISER |url=https://magnoliahowell.blogspot.com/2014/10/track-season-fundraiser.html |website=Stadium Lights & Running Spikes |access-date=30 November 2023 |date=29 October 2014}}
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| coach = Bobby Kersee (2013){{cite web |title=Free thinker: Athlete now artist on a new track - Sweet TnT Magazine |url=https://sweettntmagazine.com/free-thinker-athlete-now-artist-on-a-new-track/ |website=Sweet TNT Magazine |access-date=30 November 2023 |date=12 April 2021}}
Darryl Woodson (2020){{cite web |last1=Barclay |first1=Kat |title=Howell's Race to Tokyo |url=https://www.austinfitmagazine.com/March-2020/howells-race-to-tokyo/ |website=Austin Fit |access-date=30 November 2023 |date=1 March 2020}}
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| worlds = {{ubl
|{{bull}} 4 × 400 m, 4th (B final)
|{{bull}} 4 × 400 m, 4th (B final)
}}
| nationals = {{ubl
|2011 Trinidadian Champs
|{{bull}} 400m, 2nd {{SilverMedal}}
|{{bull}} 200m, 4th
|2012 Trinidadian Champs
|{{bull}} 100m, 6th
|{{bull}} 4 x 100m, 1st {{GoldMedal}}
|2013 Trinidadian Champs
|{{bull}} 400m, 7th
|{{bull}} 200m, 5th
|2015 Trinidadian Champs
|{{bull}} 200m, 3rd {{BronzeMedal}}
}}
| pb = {{ubl
|100m: 11.40 (+1.9) (2012)
|200m: 23.39 (+0.9) (2013)
|400m: 52.25 (2015)
}}
| education = California State University, Long Beach, studying print journalism
| collegeteam = Long Beach State 49ers{{cite web |title=49er alums have only brought success at the Olympics so far |url=https://daily49er.com/sports/2012/08/01/49er-alums-have-only-brought-success-at-the-olympics-so-far/ |website=Daily Forty-Niner |access-date=30 November 2023 |date=1 August 2012}}{{cite web |title=Long Beach's Olympians: The Full Gazettes Sports List |url=https://www.presstelegram.com/2012/07/27/long-beachs-olympians-the-full-gazettes-sports-list/ |website=Press Telegram |access-date=30 November 2023 |date=28 July 2012}}
| medaltemplates = {{Medal|Sport|Women's athletics}}
{{Medal|Country|{{flagu|Trinidad and Tobago}}}}
{{Medal|Competition|Central American and Caribbean Champs}}
{{Medal|Gold|2011 Mayagüez|4 × 100 m relay}}
{{Medal|Bronze|2011 Mayagüez|4 × 400 m relay}}
}}
Magnolia Howell (born 1993) is a former professional track and field sprinter and current writer and fine artist. Representing Trinidad and Tobago, she won the gold medal in the 4 × 400 metres at the 2011 Central American and Caribbean Championships.
Biography
Born in Sacramento, California but raised in Guadalajara, Mexico, Howell started running at eight years old.{{cite web |last1=Dyer |first1=Mackenzie |title=Retiring athlete translates her art to track, gives Olympics her all |date=1 November 2019|url=https://thedailytexan.com/2019/11/01/retiring-athlete-translates-her-art-to-track-gives-olympics-her-all/ |website=The Daily Texan |access-date=30 November 2023}} She moved to Omaha, Nebraska and attended Westside High School, where she was a state champion in both the 100 m and 200 m.{{cite web |title=Westside Alumni Newsletter - Fall 2019 by Westside Foundation - Issuu |url=https://issuu.com/westsidefoundation/docs/w_alumni_nwsltr_fall_2019_r3__8-30-19__r3_lr |website=issuu.com |access-date=30 November 2023 |language=en |date=17 February 2020}}
In college she competed for the Long Beach State 49ers track and field team, setting a school record in the 4 × 100 metres while studying print journalism. After graduating, she began to focus more exclusively on running.
At the 2011 Central American and Caribbean Championships in Athletics, Howell competed in the 4 × 100 m, 4 × 400 m, and individual 200 m for Trinidad and Tobago. In the 200 m, Howell did not qualify for the finals, but she won the gold medal in the 4 × 100 m relay leading off for teammates Michelle-Lee Ahye, Ayanna Hutchinson, and Semoy Hackett. Howell was the only athlete from that team to also compete in the 4 × 400 m finals, where her team won the bronze medal.{{cite web |title=Green denies home win to Culson, Mexico takes medal lead in Mayaguez - CAC Champs, Day 2 {{!}} NEWS {{!}} World Athletics |url=https://worldathletics.org/news/news/green-denies-home-win-to-culson-mexico-takes |website=worldathletics.org |access-date=30 November 2023}}{{cite web |title=CAC gold medallists for World Games |url=https://www.ttoc.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1588%3Acac-gold-medallists-for-world-games&Itemid=227 |website=Team TTO {{!}} Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee |access-date=30 November 2023 |language=en |date=19 July 2011}}
At the 2012 NAAATT Trinidadian Olympic trials, Howell finished 6th in the 100 metres, narrowly missing an Olympic berth.
In 2014, Howell began to train at Drake Stadium under famed athletics and former Nike coach Bobby Kersee. Following her professional rise, she competed in the 2014 and 2015 IAAF World Relays, both times representing Trinidad and Tobago in the 4 × 400 m. At both championships, Howell's team finished 4th in the 'B' finals, posting an overall best mark of 3:33.21 at the 2014 edition.{{cite web |title=T&T relay runners grab two more medals |url=https://www.guardian.co.tt/article-6.2.383164.d4c0635ebd |website=www.guardian.co.tt |access-date=30 November 2023 |language=en}}
Howell competed at the 2016 NAAATT Trials in the 400 m, but did not qualify for the 'A' final and missed out on another Olympic team spot. Following this setback, Howell took a year off from the sport and started an art company, [https://artontherun.club/ Art On The Run],{{cite web |title=🎨 ART on the Run Home Page |url=https://artontherun.club/ |website=🎨 ART on the Run |access-date=30 November 2023 |language=en}} before moving to Austin, Texas to be coached by Darryl Woodson in preparation for the 2020 Olympic cycle.{{cite web |title=Quality Time With Olympic Track & Field Hopeful Magnolia Howell |url=https://madeincookware.com/blogs/quality-time-magnolia-howell |website=Made In Cookware |access-date=30 November 2023 |language=en}} She stated that one of her goals was to break Janeil Bellille's Trinidadian record in the 400 m of 51.83 seconds.
After the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 postponed the Olympics back one year, Howell retired from the sport and focused exclusively on writing and art. As an artist under the pen name Magnolia Lafleur, she has shown her work in Los Angeles-area galleries and has sold to international clients.{{cite web |title=Meet Magnolia Lafleur: Narrative Fine Artist & CEO to Art On The Run |url=https://shoutoutla.com/meet-magnolia-lafleur-narrative-fine-artist-ceo-to-art-on-the-run/ |website=SHOUTOUT LA |access-date=30 November 2023 |date=4 January 2021}} As a journalist, she is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and has worked for the Press-Telegram, the Grunion Gazette, the Long Beach Post,{{cite web |title=Magnolia Lafleur |url=https://lbpost.com/hi-lo/author/magnolia-lafleur/ |website=the Hi-lo |access-date=1 December 2023 |date=19 February 2023}} the Palisadian-Post,{{cite web |title=Magnolia Lafleur, Author at Palisadian Post |url=https://www.palipost.com/author/magnolia/ |website=Palisadian Post |access-date=1 December 2023 |date=2 June 2022}} and the Orange County Register.{{cite web |title=Magnolia Lafleur |url=https://www.ocregister.com/author/magnolia-lafleur/ |website=Orange County Register |access-date=30 November 2023 |date=31 January 2023}}
Statistics
=Personal bests=
| class="wikitable" | |||||
| Event | Mark | Place | Competition | Venue | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 metres | 11.40 (+1.9 m/s) | align="center" | {{Bronze3}} | Tommy 'Tiny' Lister Classic | Los Angeles, California | 7 April 2012 |
| 200 metres | 23.39 (+0.9 m/s) | align="center" | 2rB | Oxy Invitational | Eagle Rock, California | 4 May 2013 |
| 400 metres | 52.25 | align="center" | {{Gold1}} | Oxy-Lu Last Chance Qualifier | Eagle Rock, California | 12 May 2015 |
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{World Athletics|14313007}}
- {{Instagram|magnolia.aotr}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Howell, Magnolia}}
Category:Trinidad and Tobago female sprinters
Category:21st-century Trinidad and Tobago sportswomen
Category:Long Beach State Beach women's track and field athletes
Category:Trinidad and Tobago women artists
Category:Trinidad and Tobago women journalists
Category:American sportspeople of Trinidad and Tobago descent