Tasha Danvers-Smith
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| Country |  Great Britain |
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| Club | ||
| Date of birth | September 19, 1977 | |
| Place of birth | London | |
| Personal Best | 54.02 | |
| Titles | ||
| Olympic Finals: | 2000 Olympics- 8th 400mH | |
| World Finals: | 2007 World Championships - 8th 400mH | |
| Highest World Ranking: | 6 (2006/2007) | |
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Infobox last updated on: January 20, 2007. |
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Natasha 'Tasha' Danvers-Smith (born Natasha Danvers on September 19, 1977, London) is a British hurdler. She won the 400 m hurdles at the 2001 Summer Universiade and won the silver medal in the same event at the 2006 Commonwealth Games. She finished 8th in the 400 m hurdles final at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. She also finished 7th in both the 2002 European Athletics Championships and the 2006 European Athletics Championships.
She won the silver medal at the 2006 Commonwealth Games after taking two years off to give birth to her son, Jaden Wayde Smith. Prior to winning the silver in Melbourne she ran one race, the Melbourne grand Prix and won. Tasha finished the season ranked 6th in the IAAF rankings. A promising return after many said she would never return from child birth.
While competing for the University of Southern California (USC), Natasha won several PAC-10 conference titles and competed in several events including the high jump and the 100 m hurdles. Natasha won the NCAA title in 2000 her second year as captain of the USC Lady Trojans. After the Sydney Olympics she returned to Los Angeles to finish her degree in Music Business and joined the famed training group HSI.
In 2003 she married her coach, Darrell Smith, nephew of renowned sprint coach John Smith. She returns to London every summer to see her family and friends and compete on the European circuit.
In February 2007, Tasha was inducted into the USC Hall of Fame.
Tasha returned to the world scene in 2007 by making her first World Championship final, in a near pr, 54.08. She drew lane 2 in the final and took 8th, but finished the season with a strong run of races following Osaka, finishing the season ranked number 10 by Track and Field News. She has solidified her spot as Britain's top long hurdler, and as Britain's number 2 long hurdler in history.
Her goal of winning Olympic gold is still her number one priority and focus.
[edit] Performance at Major Games
('Q': Automatic Qualifier, 'q': Fastest Loser Qualifier, '-': Did not qualify, 'DQ' - Disqualified, 'n/a' Not applicable) (SB: Seasons Best, PB: Personal Best)
1999 World Championships in Athletics
| Heats | Q? | Semi-Final | Q? | Final | POS |
| 56.22 | - | n/a | - | n/a | - |
| Heats | Q? | Semi-Final | Q? | Final | POS |
| 55.68 | Q | 54.95 | Q | 55.00 | 8th |
2001 World Championships in Athletics
| Heats | Q? | Semi-Final | Q? | Final | POS |
| 56.36 | - | n/a | - | n/a | - |
2003 World Championships in Athletics
| Heats | Q? | Semi-Final | Q? | Final | POS |
| 56.02 | q | 55.48 | - | n/a | - |
2007 World Championships in Athletics
| Heats | Q? | Semi-Final | Q? | Final | POS |
| 55.67 | Q | 54.08 (SB) | Q | 54:94 | 8th |
[edit] Personal Bests
- Best Marks
- 300 m, 37.80 (2000)
- 400 m, 53.26 (1998)
- 100 m hurdles, 12.96 (2003)
- 400 m hurdles, 54.02 (2003)
- High jump, 1.82 m 1998)
