Tasha Danvers

Danvers became the British 400 metres hurdles champion after winning the British AAA Championships title at the 1998 AAA Championships.{{cite web|url=https://www.nuts.org.uk/Champs/AAA/index.htm |title=AAA, WAAA and National Championships Medallists |website=National Union of Track Statisticians |access-date=5 April 2025}}

In 1999, she represented Great Britain at the 1999 World Championships in Athletics with a time of 56.66 seconds in the heats. This failed to see her qualify through the rounds; however it gave her vital experience, which she took on to the following year at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. At the age of 23, Danvers made the final of her first Olympic games, finishing in 8th place, after going out too hard.{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43NN_BlK0FM|title = - YouTube|website = YouTube}} The following year, she won the 400 m hurdles at the 2001 Summer Universiade.

After regaining the AAA title at the 2002 AAA Championships{{cite news |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000540/20020715/375/0027 |title=Weekend results - Athletics |work=The Scotsman |date=15 July 2002 |via=British Newspaper Archive|url-access=subscription |access-date=5 April 2025}} she attended her first Commonwealth Games, in Manchester. She finished 7th in the final, behind the winner Jana Pittman of Australia.{{cite web|url=https://teamengland.org/commonwealth-games-history/manchester-2002/athletes |title=Manchester 2002 Team |website=Team England |access-date=5 April 2025 }} An athlete she would meet in the future, Melaine Walker of Jamaica, finished in 4th place. That same year, she also finished 7th in the 2002 European Athletics Championships.

In 2003, she married her Coach, Darrell Smith, the nephew of sprint coach John Smith. From that season, she was styled as Tasha Danvers-Smith. Danvers reverted to her maiden name in 2008; the couple divorced the following year.{{cite magazine |url=http://www.people.co.uk/sport/other/2012/06/17/london-2012-drove-me-to-suicide-attempt-says-olympic-winner-tasha-danvers-102039-23896940/ |title=London 2012 drove me to suicide attempt says Olympic winner Tasha Danvers |author=Panther, Lewis |magazine=The People |date=17 June 2012 |accessdate=16 May 2013}}

Danvers-Smith missed her second Olympics, as she had taken time out for child-birth. This was criticised by many, including the British Olympic Medalist Alan Pascoe, who called her "stupid",[https://web.archive.org/web/20080822120247/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/olympics/2591417/Britains-Tasha-Danvers-wins-400m-hurdles-bronze---Olympics.html The Daily Telegraph] as most people thought she would never make a return to competitive athletics. She returned in 2006 to take a silver medal in the Commonwealth Games, behind Pittman, as well as a seventh place in the final of the European Championships. At the end of this year, she reached a career high of 6th in the IAAF rankings.

While competing for the University of Southern California (USC), Danvers won several Pac-10 conference titles and competed in several events including the high jump and the 100 m hurdles. Tasha won the NCAA title in 2000 her second year as captain of the Women of Troy. She holds the USC school record in the 400 hurdles and on the 4x400 metres relay while also showing up in the top 10 in the 100 metres hurdles and high jump.http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/usc/sports/c-track/auto_pdf/w-top-10.pdf {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181013070443/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/usc/sports/c-track/auto_pdf/w-top-10.pdf |date=13 October 2018 }} {{Bare URL PDF|date=March 2022}} After the Sydney Olympics, she returned to Los Angeles to finish her degree in Music Business and joined the famed training group HSI.

In February 2007, Danvers was inducted into the USC Hall of Fame.

Returning to the world scene in 2006, Danvers won her first global medal at the Melbourne Commonwealth Games, a silver and wo her third AAA title at the 2006 AAA Championships.{{cite web|url=http://www.gbrathletics.com/bc/waaa.htm |title=AAA Championships (women) |website=GBR Athletics |access-date=5 April 2025 }} She ended the summer as the sixth ranked hurdler in the world, setting the stage for her 2007 and 2008 seasons, and reclaiming her position as Britain's number one 400 m hurdler. In 2007 Danvers made her first World Championship final, in a near personal best, 54.08 s. She drew lane 2 in the final and took 8th, but finished the season with a strong run of races following Osaka, finishing the season ranked number 10 by Track and Field News. She remained the British number one for the 2nd consecutive year. Danvers-Smith also won a fourth and last British title at the 2007 British Athletics Championships.

In 2008, Danvers' athletics season started badly. She had achilles problems, and tore her hamstring on her first training session back from the Achilles tendon injury. At that year's British championships she recorded a disappointing time of 57.00 s, finishing in 2nd place far below her personal best. The race was won by the young athlete Perri Shakes Drayton. When the Olympic team was announced the following week, many{{who|date=February 2013}} criticised the selection of Danvers, as Shakes Drayton was an improving athlete, and Danvers, in many people's opinions, had reached her peak.{{citation needed|date=February 2013}} However, Danvers attended the Olympics, winning her heat, and finishing 2nd in her semi-final, being the 4th fastest qualifier for the 400 m hurdles final. Danvers was in lane 7, one inside of ones of the favourites Tiffany Ross Williams. On entering the final straight, Danvers found herself in 3rd place. A part of the race that had been disastrous for her in the past, seemed to be in her favour, as she stormed down the straight closing down on the athlete ahead of her. She won a bronze medal in the final, with a personal best of 53.84s, behind Melaine Walker of Jamaica and Sheena Tosta of the United States.

Danvers missed the 2009 World Championships in Athletics due to injury.

In 2010, she was inducted into the London Youth Games Hall of Fame.

In June 2012, Danvers retired because of a series of injury problems.{{cite news| url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/olympics/18478773 | title=London 2012: Britain's Tasha Danvers retires because of injuries| date=17 June 2012}}

Danvers is a keen artist and [http://artoftheolympians.org/artists/tasha-danvers/ member of Art of the Olympians (AOTO)]. She started singing from an early age, and currently paints canvases. Her work is on sale athttp://www.danversbydesign.com {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080823210312/http://www.danversbydesign.com/ |date=23 August 2008 }}{{cite web |url=http://www.tashadanvers.com/ |title=Home |website=tashadanvers.com}} She is also a public speaker, coach and personal trainer, as well as becoming a prominent fitness model. As a youngster she competed for Croydon in the London Youth Games.http://www.londonyouthgames.org/page.asp?section=23§ionTitle=Hall+of+Fame {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130307230906/http://www.londonyouthgames.org/page.asp?section=23§ionTitle=Hall+of+Fame |date=7 March 2013 }} Hall of Fame retrieved 19 February 2013 She has also been on The BBC's A Question of Sport.

In June 2015 Danvers appeared as a contestant on American TV show Bullseye. She reached the final stage, but failed to win when she rolled her buggy.

• Danvers only competed in the final, and did not run a leg in the heat.

;Best Marks

:300 m, 37.80 (2000)

:400 m, 52.89 (2008)

:100 m hurdles, 12.96 (2003)

:400 m hurdles, 53.84 (2008)

:High jump, 1.82 m 1998)

{{Reflist}}

• {{World Athletics}}

{{Footer U23 European Champions 400m Hurdles Women}}

{{Footer Universiade Champions 400m Hurdles Women}}

{{British Athletics Championships women's 400 metres hurdles champions}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Danvers, Tasha}}

Category:1977 births

Category:Living people

Category:Athletes from the London Borough of Lambeth

Category:British female hurdlers

Category:English female hurdlers

Category:British female high jumpers

Category:Olympic female hurdlers

Category:Olympic athletes for Great Britain

Category:Olympic bronze medallists for Great Britain

Category:Olympic bronze medalists in athletics (track and field)

Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Olympics

Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics

Category:Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics

Category:Commonwealth Games silver medallists for England

Category:Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics

Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1998 Commonwealth Games

Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2002 Commonwealth Games

Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2006 Commonwealth Games

Category:FISU World University Games gold medalists in athletics (track and field)

Category:FISU World University Games gold medalists for Great Britain

Category:Medalists at the 1999 Summer Universiade

Category:Medalists at the 2001 Summer Universiade

Category:British Athletics Championships winners

Category:AAA Championships winners

Category:Black British sportswomen

Category:English people of Jamaican descent

Category:Sportspeople of Jamaican descent

Category:Medallists at the 2006 Commonwealth Games

Category:NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners

Category:USC Trojans women's track and field athletes

Category:English female high jumpers

Category:People from Lambeth

Category:21st-century English sportswomen

Category:20th-century English sportswomen