Mary Moraa

Mary Moraa (born 15 June 2000)[1] is a Kenyan athlete who specialises in the 800 metres. She won the bronze medal in the event at the 2022 World Athletics Championships and a gold at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Mary Moraa
Personal information
NationalityKenyan
Born (2000-06-15) 15 June 2000
Sport
CountryKenya
SportAthletics
Event(s)400 metres, 800 metres
Coached byAlex Sang
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)
  • 800 m: 1:56.71 (2022)
  • 400 m: 50.67 NR (2022)
  • Indoors
  • 800 m: 2:00.61i (2023)
Medal record
Women's athletics
Representing the  Kenya
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place2022 Eugene800 m
Diamond League
First place2022800 m
Commonwealth Games
Gold medal – first place2022 Birmingham800 m
African U20 Championships
Gold medal – first place2019 Abidjan400 m
World Youth Championships
Silver medal – second place2017 Nairobi400 m

Moraa holds Kenyan record in the 400 metres. She was the 2022 Diamond League 800 m champion.

Career

Mary Moraa specialized in the 400 metres distance until 2021. She made her international debut in 2017 by winning silver in the event with a personal best at the IAAF World U18 Championships in Nairobi.[1] The following year, the 18-year-old placed fifth at the IAAF World U20 Championships held in Tampere, Finland.[1]

In 2019, she won the African U20 title, Kenyan senior title, and placed fourth at the African Games held in Rabat, Morocco.[1] She represented Kenya without success at the World Championships in Doha competing in the 400 m and mixed 4 × 400 m relay events.[1]

Moraa transitioned to the 800 metres in 2021, and represented Kenya at the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics competing in the event, where she was eliminated in the semi-finals with a time of 2:00.47.[2][1]

In July 2022, Moraa took the bronze medal in the 800 metres at the World Championships in Eugene, Oregon, clocking a personal best of 1:56.71 behind Athing Mu (1:56.30) and Keely Hodgkinson (1:56.38).[3] The following month, she won a gold in the event at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games after storming through to beat Hodgkinson in the final.[4] She went from first to last and back to first in that race.[5] In September, Moraa became the Diamond League champion over the 800 m after she won final in Zürich.

Achievements

International competitions
Representing  Kenya
YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventTime
2017 World U18 Championships Nairobi, Kenya 22nd (h) 200 m 25.48
2nd 400 m 53.31 PB
2018 World U20 Championships Tampere, Finland 5th 400 m 52.94
2019 African U20 Championships Abidjan, Ivory Coast 1st 400 m 53.57
2019 African Games Abidjan, Ivory Coast 4th 400 m 51.97
4th 4x400 m relay 3:32.93
World Championships Doha, Qatar 18th (sf) 400 m 52.11
11th (h) 4x400 m mixed 3:17.09
2021 World Relays Chorzów, Poland 13th (h) 4x400 m relay 3:39.34 SB
– 4x400 m mixed DQ
Olympic Games Tokyo, Japan 15th (sf) 800 m 2:00.47
2022 World Championships Eugene, OR, United States 3rd 800 m 1:56.71 PB
Commonwealth Games Birmingham, United Kingdom 29th (h) 400 m 59.51
1st 800 m 1:57.07
5th 4x400 m relay 3:32.28 SB

Personal bests

Circuit wins and titles, National championships

References
  1. "Mary MORAA – Athlete profile". World Athletics. Retrieved 1 January 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  2. Olobulu, Timothy (19 June 2021). "Conseslus, Timothy Cheruiyot out as Kenya names team for Tokyo Olympics". Capital Sports. Retrieved 20 June 2021.
  3. Azzi, Alex (24 July 2022). "Athing Mu becomes first American woman to win 800m, keeps win streak alive". NBC Sports. Retrieved 24 July 2022.
  4. "Hodgkinson heartbreak as Moraa beats her to Commonwealth Games gold". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
  5. Gault, Jonathan (30 December 2022). "How Did THAT Happen? Remembering the Strangest Moments in Running in 2022". LetsRun.com. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
  6. "World Leaders by Ingebrigtsen & Korir Highlight 2022 Diamond League Final". LetsRun.com. 8 September 2022. Retrieved 8 September 2022.
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