Suziann Reid

Suziann Reid (born January 14, 1977) is an American-Jamaican former track and field sprinter who specialized in the 400-meter dash. She set a personal record of 50.74 seconds for the distance in 1999. She was a silver medalist with the American women's 4 × 400-meter relay team at the 1999 World Championships in Athletics. She was part of the World Championship team twice more, in 2001 and 2005, and helped the United States to silver at the 2002 IAAF World Cup and gold at the 2001 Goodwill Games.

Reid competed collegiately for the Texas Longhorns and won three outdoor NCAA titles in the 400 m and two indoor NCAA titles. She also won four back-to-back NCAA outdoor titles in the 4 × 400 m relay. After her track career she became a writer and released Dark Secrets: Choosing Your Child's Sports Coach in 2013.

Early life and college

Born in Kingston, Jamaica with dual American citizenship, she moved the United States at age eleven and began attending Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Maryland. Her mother had been a track and field athlete in her youth. Reid took up cross country running at high school at age 14 and the coach suggested she try out for the indoor track team. It was a highly successful transition as she won a 400-meter dash and 800-meter run double at the Maryland state high school championship in 1992 then went on to take three consecutive sprint sweeps in the 100-meter dash, 200-meter dash and 400-meter dash from 1993 to 1995. At national level, she won 400 m at the National Scholastic Indoor Championships in 1994 and 1995. By the time she finished her high school career she had a best of 52.77 seconds for the 400 m.

Reid gained a sports scholarship to attend The University of Texas at Austin and began competing for their Texas Longhorns collegiate track team. In her first major competition she took third individually and in the 4 × 400-meter relay at the 1996 NCAA Women's Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships. Success followed at the NCAA Outdoor Championships where she was 400 m champion and helped set a collegiate record of 3:27.50 minutes to win the relay. Having gained eligibility to represent the United States, she won the American junior title in 400 m and won the silver medal behind Andrea Burlacu at the 1996 World Junior Championships in Athletics.

At the 1997 NCAA Indoors she was off the podium in the 400 m but improved to runner-up in the relay. She achieved a personal record of 50.95 seconds in the NCAA Outdoor Championships final, edged out by LaTarsha Stroman. She retained the relay title for the Texas Longhorns that year. In her last two years of college competition she went undefeated with back-to-back wins in the 400 m indoors and outdoors at the NCAA meet. She also helped the Longhorns to four straight NCAA 4 × 400 m relay titles from 1996 to 1999.

For her collegiate career, she was given the Honda Broderick Award (now the Honda Sports Award)as the female track and field athlete of the year in 1999.

Professional career

Reid was a frequent competitor for the United States in 4 × 400-meter relay team and her first medal with them came at the 1999 Summer Universiade, where she anchored a team of Yolanda Brown-Moore, Yulanda Nelson and Mikele Barber to the gold medals. She was the 400 m runner-up at the 1999 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships to Maicel Malone and as result gained an individual and relay spot on the team for the 1999 World Championships in Athletics She was eliminated in the semi-finals of the 400 m, but won a silver medalleading off the relay team including Michelle Collins and Jearl Miles Clark, which finished behind Russia. Reid's career best run of 50.74 seconds that year ranked her third in the United States.

In the 2000 track season she won her first national title at the USA Indoor Track and Field Championships, bringing an end to Jearl Miles Clark's three-year streak. She failed to make the Olympic team after missing the final at the 2000 United States Olympic Trials. She repeated as USA Indoor champion and ran at the 2001 IAAF World Indoor Championships, though an injury during her run in the final saw her finish a distant sixth. With a fifth-place finish at the 2001 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships she made the United States relay team. Reid did not another medal at the 2001 World Championships in Athletics as she dropped the baton on the final exchange and the team of Miles-Clark, Monique Hennagan and Collins ended in fourth as a result. Redemption came at the 2001 Goodwill Games, where she anchored the same team to a gold medal in 3:24.63 minutes.

In the last few years of her career, Reid remained a finalist at national level and made two last international appearances in the relay. A team of Collins, Crystal Cox, Reid and Hennagan claimed the silver medals behind the Americas team at the 2002 IAAF World Cup. At the 2005 World Championships in Athletics, Reid led off the American women, but a line violation in the heats stage saw them disqualified. She retired after that competition.

Outdoor

• 100 metres – 11.70 (2001)
• 200 metres – 23.15 (1999)
• 400 metres – 50.74 (1999)
• 800 metres – 2:23.80 (1998)
• 4 × 400 metres relay – 3:22.09 (1999)

Indoor

• 60 metres – 7.41 (1999)
• 200 metres – 23.13 (1999)
• 400 metres – 51.68 (1999)

All information from All-Athletics profile.

• USA Indoor Track and Field Championships
  • 400 m: 2000, 2001
• NCAA Women's Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships
  • 400 m: 1996, 1998, 1999
  • 4 × 400 m relay: 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999
• NCAA Women's Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships
  • 400 m: 1998, 1999