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Biography
VERSATILITY
World-Champion hurdler Michelle Perry used to help Gail Devers, one of the most accomplished American hurdlers in history, train for the Olympics. Now, Devers returns the favor by preparing Perry to accomplish a feat she never did, an individual Olympic gold.
Perry and Devers, a fellow Arluck client, shared a coach in Bob Kersee at UCLA and now share phone calls and secrets to success. Perry says the bond between these former Bruins gives her an advantage on the track, as her former idol has evolved into her mentor.
A competitive runner since the third grade, Perry had displayed an uncanny athletic ability since her youth. Growing up in a military family, Perry learned about work ethic at a young age. Natural ability and dedication eventually led her to UCLA, where she would study sociology while competing for one of best track and field programs in the nation.
Perry’s path to hurdling’s elite took a few detours along the way. Her college career began in the 400m hurdles, an event she found success in, but did not wholly enjoy. As her career progressed, coaches began to see her excel in the 100m hurdles and shifted events. Almost immediately, Perry began to dominate, winning two-straight Pac-10 Championships in the event.
Still, Coach Kersee could not get over Perry’s athletic ability and was convinced she could be a national champion in the heptathlon, which challenges an athlete in all field events. Despite being new to competition, she would go on to place second in the event at the NCAA Outdoor Championships and would qualify for the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.
At the Olympics, Michelle ran a time of 12.74 in the 100m hurdles portion of the heptathlon, impressing Kersee, who felt she could be competitive on an international stage with such a time. Kersee was right.
DOMINATION
A two-time world champion, Michelle is only the second athlete to win back-to-back world championships in the 100m hurdles, the other being Devers. Michelle’s first world championship came in Helsinki in 2005, with a time of 12.66. That same year she also won the U.S. Championship as well as the World Athletic finals.
Now solely focused on the 100m hurdles, Michelle has been ranked number one in the world by Track and Field news for the past three years. Michelle’s 2007 was one of the most dominant in hurdling history as she had victories in the Nike Prefontaine Classic, adidas Track Classic, Oslo, Paris, Rome, Lausanne and Sheffield Grand Prix. A remarkable season was capped off by her second world championship gold medal in Osaka.
With one Olympic experience under her belt, Michelle has her eyes set on gold for Beijing.
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