Marian Burnett Explained

Marian Joan Burnett (born 22 February 1976 in Linden) is a female middle-distance runner from Guyana who specialises in the 800 metres. She competed in the 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympic Games, reaching the second heat of the 800 metres on both occasions.[1]

She won her first international medal at the 1999 Central American and Caribbean Championships in Athletics, where she finished third in the 1500 metres.[2] She went to study at Louisiana State University and, representing the LSU Lady Tigers track and field team, she took the 800 m NCAA indoor title in 2002.[3] She competed for Guyana at the 2003 Pan American Games and after initially finishing third in the 800 m, she was promoted to the silver medal after event winner Letitia Vriesde was disqualified for excessive caffeine use.[4]

The following year she took part in the 2004 IAAF World Indoor Championships and also reached the semi-finals of the women's 800 m at the 2004 Athens Olympics. She attended the 2005 World Championships in Athletics but failed to progress beyond the heats. In 2006, after another appearance on the World Indoor stage, she reached the semi-finals of the 2006 Commonwealth Games.[5] She went on to win her first continental title the next year, beating all opposition in the 800 m for a gold medal at the 2007 South American Championships in Athletics,[6] and also won a silver medal in the 1500 m with a national record time.[7] She reached the semi-finals of her event at the 2007 World Championships a few months later.[5]

Burnett set an indoor national record of 2:02.27 for the 800 m at the 2008 IAAF World Indoor Championships, although this was not enough to reach the final. She made her second Olympic appearance at the 2008 Beijing Games, being eliminated in the heats, and reached the semi-finals at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics.[5]

Competition record

Representing
1998Central American and Caribbean GamesMaracaibo, Venezuela12th (h)800 m2:14.58
6th1500 m4:44.71
1999Central American and Caribbean ChampionshipsBridgetown, Barbados3rd1500 m4:35.56
2001Central American and Caribbean ChampionshipsGuatemala City, Guatemala4th800 m2:08.29
2002Commonwealth GamesManchester, United Kingdom10th (sf)800 m2:03.52
2003Pan American GamesSanto Domingo, Dominican Republicbgcolor=silver2nd800 m2:03.58
2004World Indoor ChampionshipsBudapest, Hungary11th (h)800 m2:04.48 (iNR)
Olympic GamesAthens, Greece22nd (sf)800 m2:02.21
2005World ChampionshipsHelsinki, Finland33rd (h)800 m2:09.88
2006World Indoor ChampionshipsMoscow, Russia19th (h)800 m2:07.18
Commonwealth GamesMelbourne, Australia15th (sf)800 m2:07.13
Cartagena, Colombia4th800 m2:06.20
2007South American ChampionshipsSão Paulo, Brazilbgcolor=gold1st800 m2:03.57
bgcolor=silver2nd1500 m4:20.69 (NR)
Pan American GamesRio de Janeiro, Brazil4th800 m2:00.40
4th1500 m4:17.91 (NR)
World ChampionshipsOsaka, Japan20th (sf)800 m2:01.02
2008World Indoor ChampionshipsValencia, Spain8th (sf)800 m2:02.27 (iNR)
Olympic GamesBeijing, China23rd (h)800 m2:02.02
2009World ChampionshipsBerlin, Germany21st (sf)800 m2:02.75
2010Central American and Caribbean GamesMayagüez, Puerto Rico3rd800 m2:04.45
4th1500 m4:22.56

Personal bests

EventTime (min)VenueDate
53.76 Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States 21 May 2007
1:59.47 Palo Alto, California, United States 31 May 2004
800 m (indoor) 2:02.27 8 March 2008
4:17.91 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 27 July 2007

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Marian Burnett Biography and Olympic Results | Olympics at . https://web.archive.org/web/20200418075133/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/bu/marian-burnett-1.html . dead . 2020-04-18 . Sports-reference.com . 1976-02-22 . 2010-06-02.
  2. http://www.gbrathletics.com/ic/caccw.htm Central American and Caribbean Championships (Women)
  3. http://www.gbrathletics.com/nc/ncaai.htm NCAA Division I Indoor Championships
  4. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/athletics/3145935.stm Grimes fails drugs test
  5. http://www.iaaf.org/athletes/biographies/country=guy/athcode=188120/index.html Burnett, Marian Biography
  6. Biscayart, Eduardo (2007-06-09). 6.91 Long Jump victory for Maggi over Costa - South American Championships Day Two. IAAF. Retrieved on 2010-07-25.
  7. Biscayart, Eduardo (2007-06-10). 14.57 Area Triple Jump Record for Costa as South American Champs finish. IAAF. Retrieved on 2010-07-25.