Pauline Davis-Thompson

{{short description|Bahamian sprinter}}{{BLP more sources|date=June 2023}}{{about|the sprinter from the Bahamas|the California State Assemblywoman|Pauline Davis (politician)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2018}}{{Infobox sportsperson

| image =

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| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1966|7|9}}

| birth_place = Nassau, Bahamas

| medaltemplates =

{{Medal|Country | {{BAH}} }}

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Pauline Elaine Davis-Thompson (born 9 July 1966) is a former Bahamian sprinter. She competed at five Olympics,{{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/da/pauline-davis-thompson-1.html |title=Pauline Davis-Thompson |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161203021556/http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/da/pauline-davis-thompson-1.html |archive-date=2016-12-03}} a rarity for a track and field athlete. She won her first medal at her fourth Olympics and her first gold medals at her fifth Olympics (Sydney 2000) at age 34 in the 4 × 100 m Relay and, after Marion Jones' belated disqualification nine years later, in the 200 m.

In 2022, Davis released her memoirs through Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. Running Sideways: The Olympic Champion Who Made Track and Field History has won two international book awards.

Winner, Autobiography/Memoir, International Book Awards, 2023

Winner, Biography/Autobiography, Track and Field Writers of America (TAFWA) Book Award, 2022

In 2024, Davis signed a publishing deal to have Running Sideways translated and published within China.

Career

In 1984, she was awarded the Austin Sealy Trophy for the

most outstanding athlete of the 1984 CARIFTA Games.

{{ Citation

|title = Carifta Games Magazine, Part 2

|url = http://www.cariftagames2011.herobo.com/web_documents/carifta_magazine_sm_part2.pdf

|publisher = Carifta Games 2011

|access-date = 12 Oct 2011

|url-status = dead

|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120425061142/http://www.cariftagames2011.herobo.com/web_documents/carifta_magazine_sm_part2.pdf

|archive-date = 2012-04-25

}}

{{ Citation

|title = Carifta Games Magazine, Part 3

|url = http://www.cariftagames2011.herobo.com/web_documents/carifta_magazine_sm_part3.pdf

|publisher = Carifta Games 2011

|access-date = 12 Oct 2011

|url-status = dead

|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120425061211/http://www.cariftagames2011.herobo.com/web_documents/carifta_magazine_sm_part3.pdf

|archive-date = 2012-04-25

}}

Her first high-profile success came in 1989 when she became the NCAA National Champion in the 200-meter dash while setting a collegiate national record as a member of the Alabama Crimson Tide team at the University of Alabama. Then in 1995, she won the silver medal in the 200 metres at the IAAF World Indoor Championships and won another silver, this time in the 400 metres, at the 1995 World Championships in Athletics.{{fact|date=September 2018}}

She ran at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics the following year and although she narrowly missed out on a medal in the 400 m, she helped the Bahamian team to a silver medal in the 4 × 100 metres relay. In 1997 she made both the 400 m and 100 m relay finals but failed to win a medal in either event. She received her first World Championships gold medal two years later, in 1999, aiding the Bahamian relay team to victory.{{fact|date=September 2018}}

She won a gold medal in both the 200 metres and the 4 × 100 m relay at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. She originally finished in second place in the women's 200 m behind Marion Jones, but on 5 October 2007, Jones admitted to taking performance-enhancing steroids and was stripped of the title. On 9 December 2009, Davis-Thompson was awarded the gold medal.{{Cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/olympic_games/8401333.stm|title=Katerina Thanou denied Marion Jones' Olympic 100m gold|access-date=8 December 2009|publisher=BBC.co.uk|author=BBC | date=8 December 2009}}

After her track career, she went into athletics administration, being elected to the IAAF council in 2007.[http://www.iaaf.org/aboutiaaf/news/newsid=55097.html Congratulations Pauline! - Five Olympic champions now in IAAF Council]. IAAF (2009-12-11). Retrieved on 2009-12-12.

Personal life

She was married to Jamaican Olympic hurdler (1992) Mark Thompson.{{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/th/mark-thompson-1.html |title=Mark Thompson |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161204021703/http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/th/mark-thompson-1.html |archive-date=2016-12-04}}

As a teenager, she had to constantly wear a sports bra to deal with her unoptimal physique at the time.{{cite web |url=http://www.sawnet.org/news/jayasinghe1.txt |title=A bit of foolishness to ease the tension |work=The Record |first=Adrian |last=Wojnarowski |date=29 September 2000 |access-date=2010-03-03 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100620081557/http://sawnet.org/news/jayasinghe1.txt |archive-date=2010-06-20 }}

Personal bests

class=wikitable
Event !Time !Date !Venue
100 m \|10.97 \|21 July 2000 \|Nassau, Bahamas
200 m \|22.27 \|28 September 2000 \|Sydney, Australia
400 m \|49.28 \|29 July 1996 \|Atlanta, United States

class=wikitable

Event

!Time

!Date

!Venue

100 m

|10.97

|21 July 2000

|Nassau, Bahamas

200 m

|22.27

|28 September 2000