Tiffany Porter

Tiffany Porter
Porter at the 2016 European Indoor Championships
Personal information
Birth nameTiffany Adaeze Ofili
NationalityBritish, American
Born (1987-11-13) 13 November 1987 (age 36)[1]
Ypsilanti, Michigan, United States[2]
Alma materUniversity of Michigan
Height175 cm (5 ft 9 in)[1]
Weight68 kg (150 lb)[1]
Sport
CountryUnited Kingdom
United States
SportTrack and field
Event(s)60 metres hurdles
100 metres hurdles
200 metres
Long jump
College teamUniversity of Michigan
ClubBirchfield Harriers
TeamGB
Turned pro2009
Coached byRana Reider[3]
Retired2022
Achievements and titles
Olympic finalsRio 2016
National finalsBritish Team Trials 2012/2016
Personal best(s)60m hurdles: 7.80 NR (2011)[4]
100m hurdles: 12.51 (2014)
Long jump: 6.48m (2009)
Medal record
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
World Championships 0 0 1
World Indoor Championships 0 1 2
Continental Cup 0 1 0
European Championships 1 0 1
European Indoor Championships 0 1 1
Commonwealth Games 0 1 0
NACAC Championships 0 1 0
World Junior Championships 0 0 1
NACAC U-23 Championships 1 0 0
Total 2 5 5
Representing  Great Britain
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2013 Moscow 100 m hurdles
World Indoor Championships
Silver medal – second place 2012 Istanbul 60 m hurdles
Bronze medal – third place 2014 Sopot 60 m hurdles
Bronze medal – third place 2016 Portland 60 m hurdles
Diamond League
Bronze medal – third place 2013 100 m hurdles
European Championships
Gold medal – first place 2014 Zürich 100 m hurdles
Bronze medal – third place 2016 Amsterdam 100 m hurdles
European Indoor Championships
Silver medal – second place 2011 Paris 60m hurdles
Bronze medal – third place 2021 Torun 60m hurdles
Representing  England
Commonwealth Games
Silver medal – second place 2014 Glasgow 100 m hurdles
Representing  England
Continental Cup
Silver medal – second place 2014 Marrakesh 100 m hurdles
Representing  United States
NACAC Championships
Silver medal – second place 2007 San Salvador 100 m hurdles
NACAC U-23 Championships
Gold medal – first place 2008 Toluca 100 m hurdles
World Junior Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2006 Beijing 100 m hurdles

Tiffany Adaeze Porter (née Ofili; born 13 November 1987) is a track and field athlete with joint British and American nationality who specialises in the 100 metres hurdles. She represented the United States as a junior, but began representing Great Britain in 2010 on joining the senior ranks after moving to England and competed for Great Britain at the 2012 Olympic Games in London.[5]

Porter won a bronze medal in the 100 m hurdles at the 2013 World Championships. In 2014, she won a silver medal representing England at the Commonwealth Games. Later in 2014 she took her first major title, a gold medal at the European Championships, becoming the first British woman to win a European title in the event. Her personal best of 12.51 set in 2014 was the British record until 2022 when it was broken by Cindy Sember. She is also a two-time medallist over 60 m hurdles at the World Indoor Championships.

She is the sister of Cindy Sember, another elite-level sprint hurdler with dual British and American nationality; Sember, too, chose to represent Great Britain internationally. Unlike Porter, Sember had never represented the United States as a junior. Both sisters made the final of the 100 metre hurdles at the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Early life

[edit]

Tiffany Porter's father Felix is Nigerian, her mother Lalana is British of African descent. Porter was born in the United States. She has held both American and British nationality since her birth. She has therefore been eligible to represent both the United States and Great Britain. She describes herself as "proud to be American, British and Nigerian".[6]

NCAA

[edit]

Tiffany (Ofili) Porter (2006–09) is a five-time NCAA national champion and All-America selection during Hall of Fame University of Michigan Wolverines women's track and field career.[7] Ofili won three straight national crowns (2007-09) in the 100-meter hurdles.[8]

Athletics career

[edit]

As an American athlete, Porter represented the United States at the inaugural NACAC Championships winning a silver medal. However, at the end of the 2010 season, she changed her allegiance to Great Britain. Commenting on her switch, she said: "I knew I was going to perform no matter what vest I had on. I have always regarded myself as British, American and Nigerian. I'm all three."[9]

On 29 May 2011, at the Fanny Blankers-Koen Games, Porter broke Angie Thorp's 15-year-old British record of 12.80s in the 100m Hurdles with a run of 12.77s.[10] Thorp said that she was "devastated" at losing her record to an American-born athlete. Thorp said that she would have congratulated an established British athlete who took her record; at the time Jessica Ennis and Sarah Claxton both had personal bests of 12.81s.[11]

Porter lowered her British record on 22 July 2011, with a time of 12.60s at the Diamond League meeting in Monaco, breaking her previous personal best of 12.73s (set when she was still a US athlete). Her record was broken on 3 August 2012 by Jessica Ennis in the London Olympics heptathlon achieving 12.54s.[12] In September 2011 she was nominated for "European Athlete of the Year".[13] In October 800m runner Mariya Savinova was announced as the winner.[14]

UK Athletics head coach, Charles van Commenee gave Porter the responsibility of the team captaincy ahead of the 2012 World Indoor Championships in March;[15] she was subsequently labelled a "Plastic Brit" after refusing (or being unable) to recite the words of the British national anthem in a press conference.[16]

In 2012 Porter was nominated for "European Athlete of the Month" twice. In March she was nominated along with fellow Brits Katarina Johnson-Thompson and Yamile Aldama.[17] She was nominated again in May, this time with Hannah England and eventual winner Jessica Ennis.[18]

In 2013 Porter switched coaches from James Henry to Rana Reider, and moved to Loughborough to train with Reider's group at Loughborough University's High Performance Centre.[19] At the 2013 World Championships in Moscow, she won a bronze medal in the 100 m Hurdles in a personal best time of 12.55 seconds, just one hundredth of a second off Jessica Ennis' British record of 12.54.[20]

Porter began 2014 by winning a bronze medal in the 60 m hurdles at the World Indoor Championships.[21] Then in August, she ran 12.80 to win a silver medal in the 100 m hurdles at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, behind Sally Pearson of Australia.[22] Two weeks later, she won the European Championships in Zurich, with a time of 12.76.[23] In September 2014, at the IAAF Continental Cup, she broke the UK record with a time of 12.51 secs, finishing behind Dawn Harper-Nelson of the US.[23]

Porter won bronze at the 2016 IAAF World Indoor Championships in Portland, Oregon[24] and was seveneth at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.[25]

She took time away from athletics to have a child in 2019.[26] On her return to the track she won a bronze medal at the 2021 European Athletics Indoor Championships in Toruń, Poland.[27] At the delayed 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Porter finished fifth in her semi-final and therefore failed to make the final.[28] She retired from athletics in February 2022.[29][30]

Personal life

[edit]

Porter is the older sister of the hurdler Cindy Ofili, who also competes for Great Britain.

Porter married American hurdler Jeff Porter in May 2011,[10] and began to compete under her married name in July 2011, initially as Tiffany Ofili-Porter, then simply as Tiffany Porter.[31] She graduated from the University of Michigan with a PhD in pharmacology in 2012.[32]

She is Catholic.[33]

International competitions

[edit]
Year Competition Venue Position Event Notes
Representing the  United States
2006 World Junior Championships Beijing, China 3rd 100 m hurdles 13.37 (0.0 m/s)
2007 NACAC Championships San Salvador, El Salvador 2nd 100 m hurdles 13.27
2008 NACAC U-23 Championships Toluca, México 1st 100m hurdles 12.82 (-0.6 m/s) A
Representing  Great Britain /  England
2011 European Indoor Championships Paris, France 2nd 60 m hurdles 7.80
World Championships Daegu, South Korea 4th 100 m hurdles 12.63
heats 4 × 100 m relay 43.95
2012 World Indoor Championships Istanbul, Turkey 2nd 60 m hurdles 7.94
Olympic Games London, United Kingdom semi-final 100 m hurdles 12.79
2013 World Championships Moscow, Russia 3rd 100 m hurdles 12.55
2014 World Indoor Championships Sopot, Poland 3rd 60 m hurdles 7.86
Commonwealth Games Glasgow, Scotland 2nd 100 m hurdles 12.80
European Championships Zürich, Switzerland 1st 100 m hurdles 12.76
Continental Cup Marrakesh, Morocco 2nd 100 m hurdles 12.51
2015 World Championships Beijing, China 5th 100 m hurdles 12.68
2016 World Indoor Championships Portland, United States 3rd 60 m hurdles 7.90
European Championships Amsterdam, Netherlands 3rd 100 m hurdles 12.76
Olympic Games Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 7th 100 m hurdles 12.76
2017 World Championships London, United Kingdom 29th (h) 100 m hurdles 13.18
2018 Commonwealth Games Gold Coast, Australia 6th 100 m hurdles 13.12
2021 European Indoor Championships Torun, Poland 3rd 60 m hurdles 7.92
Olympic Games Tokyo, Japan 18th (sf) 100 m hurdles 12.86

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c "Tiffany Porter". teamgb.com. British Olympic Association. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
  2. ^ Matthew Nash (2 March 2011). "Tiffany Ofili: 'Representing UK, not USA, always at the back of my mind'". Metro. UK: Associated Newspapers. Retrieved 3 September 2011.
  3. ^ "Athlete Profile". Power of 10. Retrieved 3 June 2013.
  4. ^ "GB's Tiffany Ofili wins European indoor hurdles silver". BBC Sport. 4 March 2011. Retrieved 3 September 2011.
  5. ^ "Ten Essential Facts about...Tiffany Porter", London Evening Standard, 7 August 2012
  6. ^ Tiffany Porter: I am proud to be American, British and Nigerian, The Guardian, 28 May 2012
  7. ^ Tiffany Porter Inducted into U-M Hall of Fame Michigan Wolverines
  8. ^ Biography TiffOfili.com
  9. ^ Alex Sphinx (5 March 2011). "Tiffany Ofili smashes record held by Jess Ennis to take European silver". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 3 September 2011.
  10. ^ a b "Proctor adds Caribbean flavour to lift British medal prospects". The Independent. London. 8 June 2011. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 9 June 2012.
  11. ^ Gare Joyce (29 November 2012). "What Does the Flag Mean: Nationalism and the Olympics". Sportsnet. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
  12. ^ "Mo Farah and Tiffany Ofili-Porter set records in Monaco". BBC Sport. 22 July 2012. Retrieved 10 June 2012.
  13. ^ "Williams is Rising Star". uka.org.uk. 30 September 2012. Retrieved 19 September 2012.
  14. ^ "Russia's Savinova voted 2011 European Athlete of the Year". european-athletics.org. 3 October 2011. Archived from the original on 19 October 2013. Retrieved 17 September 2012.
  15. ^ "Van Commenee defends handing GB captaincy to US-born Porter". BBC. 8 March 2012. Retrieved 19 September 2012.
  16. ^ Bull, Andy (8 March 2012). "Tiffany Porter frustrates knavish tricks over national anthem knowledge". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 18 July 2024.
  17. ^ "vote for european athlete of the month for march". uka.org.uk. Retrieved 16 September 2012.
  18. ^ "vote in athlete of the month for may". uka.org.uk. 6 June 2012. Retrieved 16 September 2012.
  19. ^ Porter, Tiffany (21 June 2013). "Tiffany Porter: It felt like the first day at a new school but I'm glad I made the move". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  20. ^ Ingle, Sean (17 August 2013). "Britain's 4x400m women and hurdler Tiffany Porter win bronze medals". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 18 July 2024.
  21. ^ "Richard Kilty sprints to World Indoor gold in Sopot". Athletics Weekly. 8 March 2014. Retrieved 18 July 2024.
  22. ^ "Sally Pearson takes Glasgow gold in the 100m hurdles final". Courier Mail. Retrieved 18 July 2024.
  23. ^ a b "Tiffany Porter breaks UK 100m hurdles record at IAAF Continental Cup". Athletics Weekly. 14 September 2014. Retrieved 18 July 2024.
  24. ^ "Tiffany Porter now looks to build on Portland bronze". Athletics Weekly. 19 March 2016. Retrieved 18 July 2024.
  25. ^ "Michigan's Ofili sisters finish memorable Olympic journey". Detroit News. Retrieved 18 July 2024.
  26. ^ "Tokyo Olympics: Hurdling sisters Tiffany Porter and Cindy Sember chasing the ultimate comeback prize". BBC Sport. 2 June 2021. Retrieved 18 July 2024.
  27. ^ "Woodford Green sisters Tiffany Porter and Cindy Sember bag medals Indoor Championships". Ilford Recorder. 8 March 2021. Retrieved 18 July 2024.
  28. ^ "Woodford Green's Tiffany Porter could retire after failing to reach Olympics final". Ilford Recorder. 3 August 2021. Retrieved 18 July 2024.
  29. ^ "Tiffany Porter: Great Britain's 60m & 100m hurdles record holder retires". BBC Sport. 5 February 2022. Retrieved 18 July 2024.
  30. ^ "Multiple world medalist Porter retires". World Athletics. Retrieved 18 July 2024.
  31. ^ "Tiffany Porter: Set to silence critics by being plastic fantastic". The Independent. London. 4 August 2011. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 9 June 2012.
  32. ^ "Tiffany Porter: I am proud to be American, British and Nigerian". The Guardian. London. 28 May 2012. Retrieved 10 June 2012.
  33. ^ Ofili Porter, Tiffany (22 November 2023). "Three Takeaways From My Son's Baptism". Dr. Tiffany Ofili Porter. Retrieved 1 July 2024.
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