Dina Asher-Smith

Dina Asher-Smith

Asher-Smith at the 2015 European Athletics Indoor Championships
Personal information
Full name	Geraldina Rachel Asher-Smith
Nationality	British
Born	(1995-12-04) 4 December 1995 Orpington, London, England
Height	1.64 m (5 ft 4 1⁄2 in)
Weight	55 kg (121 lb)
Sport
Sport	Track and Field
Event(s)	100 m, 200 m
Club	Blackheath and Bromley Harriers Athletic Club
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)	60 m: 7.08 (NR) (Prague, 2015) 100 m: 10.99 (NR) (London, 2015) 200 m: 22.07 (NR) (Beijing, 2015)
Medal record Women's athletics Representing  Great Britain Olympic Games 2016 Rio de Janeiro 4×100 m relay World Championships 2013 Moscow 4×100 m relay European Championships 2016 Amsterdam 200 m 2016 Amsterdam 4×100 m relay European Indoor Championships 2015 Prague 60 m World Junior Championships 2014 Oregon 100 m European Junior Championships 2013 Rieti 200 m 2013 Rieti 4×100 m relay Commonwealth Youth Games 2011 Douglas 200 m 2011 Douglas 4×100 m relay

Dina Asher-Smith (born 4 December 1995) is a British sprinter who holds the British records for both the 100 metres and 200 metres. In the 4 x 100 metres relay, she won bronze medals at the 2016 Olympic Games and the 2013 World Championships. She is also the 2016 European Champion at 200 metres, the 2014 World Junior Champion at 100 metres, and the 2013 European Junior Champion at 200 metres.

Asher-Smith first broke the British 100 metres record with a time of 11.02 seconds on 24 May 2015 in Hengelo, before becoming the first ever British woman to run 100 metres in under 11 seconds, when she ran 10.99 at the London Anniversary Games on 25 July 2015.^[1] When finishing fifth at the 2015 World Championships, she broke Kathy Cook's 31 year-old British record for the 200 metres, running 22.07 seconds. She also finished fifth in the 200 metres final at the 2016 Olympic Games.

Personal life

Asher-Smith was born in Orpington, London, England and from 2008–2014, she attended Newstead Wood School in Orpington. Asher-Smith's parents are Julie and Winston.

In August 2014, Asher-Smith's A-Level exam results allowed her entry into King's College London to study history; upon receiving the results, she called it "the best morning" of her life.^[2][3] She is currently balancing her studies at King's College London and athletics.^[4][5]

Career

Asher-Smith is a member of Blackheath and Bromley Harriers Athletic Club and is coached by John Blackie. In 2009, she ran the 300 metres in 39.16 sec to set the current World age 13 best.^[6] She has won the English Schools Championships 200 m title as an Under 15 (2010), U17 (2011) and U20 (2013). She won the 2013 event in a time of 23.63 seconds into a strong headwind.^[6] At the 2012 World Junior Championships she finished 7th in the 200 m final in a then personal best time of 23.50. She said afterwards that "I am elated to have made the final and achieve a PB in the process, and I'm looking ahead to next year in Italy."

In 2013, Asher-Smith won two gold medals at the European Junior Championships in Rieti, winning the 200 m in 23.29, before joining Yasmin Miller, Steffi Wilson and Desiree Henry to win the 4 x 100m relay and break the UK junior record. She was the youngest athlete selected for the Great Britain and Northern Ireland Squad for the 2013 World Championships in Moscow and along with team mates Annabelle Lewis, Ashleigh Nelson and Hayley Jones, won the bronze medal in the 4 x 100m relay. The British squad originally finished fourth in the final but were promoted to the bronze medal after the disqualification of the French team. Asher-Smith was shortlisted for the 2013 BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year.^[7]

In 2014, Asher-Smith won the 100 metres at the World Junior Championships in Eugene, running 11.23 secs.

At the 2014 European Athletics Championships in Zurich, Asher-Smith qualified for the 200 m final but pulled up with a hamstring injury on the bend.

Asher-Smith took the silver medal at the 2015 European Athletics Indoor Championships for the 60 m. It was the first time in 30 years that a British female won a medal in the event. In doing so, she equalled Jeanette Kwakye's British record of 7.08 s and, being 19 years old, became the fastest ever teenager at 60 m.^[8] She finished 5th in the 2015 IAAF World Athletic Championships in Beijing with a time of 22.07, a new British Record.

At the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, Asher-Smith finished fifth in the 200 metres, in 22.31 seconds, before winning a bronze medal in the 4 x 100 metres relay in a British record of 41.77 seconds, along with her teammates Asha Philip, Desiree Henry and Daryll Neita.^[9]

Major competitive record

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Event	Notes
Representing  Great Britain
2013	European Junior Championships	Rieti, Italy	1st	200 m	23.29
			1st	4x100 m relay	43.81 NJR
2014	World Junior Championships	Eugene, United States	1st	100 m	11.23
	European Championships	Zürich, Switzerland	3rd (sf)	200 m	22.611
2015	European Indoor Championships	Prague, Czech Republic	2nd	60 m	7.08 =NR
	World Championships	Beijing, China	5th	200 m	22.07 NR
2016	World Indoor Championships	Portland, United States	6th (sf)	60 m	7.112
	European Championships	Amsterdam, Netherlands	1st	200 m	22.37
			2nd	4x100 m relay	42.45
	Olympic Games	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	5th	200 m	22.31
			3rd	4 × 100 m relay	41.77

¹Did not finish in the final
²Did not start in the final

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Dina Asher-Smith.

• Dina Asher-Smith profile at IAAF
• Dina Asher-Smith profile at Power of 10