| Rose Mary Almanza | |
| Headercolor: | lightsteelblue |
| Fullname: | Rose Mary Almanza Blanco |
| Birth Date: | 13 July 1992 |
| Birth Place: | Camagüey, Cuba[1] |
| Height: | 1.65 m[2] |
| Weight: | 55 kg |
| Sport: | Athletics |
| Event: | Middle-distance running |
Rose Mary Almanza Blanco (born 13 July 1992) is a Cuban middle-distance runner who competes in the 800 metres. She represented Cuba at the Pan American Games in 2011, 2015, 2019 and won medals at the Ibero-American and Central American and Caribbean Championships in Athletics.She was world champion in the 4x400 meter relay in Silesia 2021
Almanza ran internationally from a young age, coming fourth at the 2009 World Youth Championships in Athletics before taking the 800 m title at the Pan American Junior Championships.[3] [4] She won at the Barrientos Memorial in March 2010 and followed this with a personal best of 2:03.03 to take the silver medal at the 2010 Ibero-American Championships in Athletics.[5] [6] She ran a national junior record of 2:02.04 in Havana in July and came fourth at the 2010 World Junior Championships in Athletics.
In 2011, she improved her record further to 2:00.56 and won her first senior regional medal at the 2011 Central American and Caribbean Championships in Athletics, placing second in the 800 m behind Gabriela Medina. She came close to a medal at the 2011 Pan American Games, but was edged into fourth place in the final.[7]
She began 2012 in strong form, taking silver medals in the 800 m and 4×400 metres relay at the Ibero-American Championships.[8] [9] A run of 1:59.55 in Havana was enough to gain her a place on the Cuban squad for the 2012 London Olympics.[10]
Almanza continued to perform at a high level in subsequent years. She set a 1:57.70 personal best in 2015, participated in the 2016 Rio Olympics and won the 800m title in the 2017 Summer Universiade.
By June 2021, Almanza had returned to career-best form in the 800m, running another personal best and world-leading time of 1:56.42 in Ordizia, Spain.[11]
| Event | Result | Venue | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 800 m | 1:56.28 | 4 July 2021 | ||
| 800 m indoor | 2:04.18 | 9 February 2016 | ||
| 1500 m | 4:14.53 | 9 Oct 2014 |
| Representing | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | ALBA Games | La Habana, Cuba | 4th | 1500 m | 4:30.20 | |
| World Youth Championships | Bressanone, Italy | 4th | 800 m | 2:04.31 | ||
| Pan American Junior Championships | Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago | bgcolor=gold | 1st | 800 m | 2:03.83 | |
| 2010 | Ibero-American Championships | San Fernando, Spain | bgcolor=silver | 2nd | 800m | 2:03.03 |
| World Junior Championships | Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada | 4th | 800 m | 2:02.67 | ||
| 2011 | Central American and Caribbean Championships | Mayagüez, Puerto Rico | bgcolor=silver | 2nd | 800m | 2:02.23 |
| Pan American Games | Guadalajara, México | 4th | 800m | 2:04.82 A | ||
| 2012 | Ibero-American Championships | Barquisimeto, Venezuela | bgcolor=silver | 2nd | 800 m | 2:03.29 |
| bgcolor=silver | 2nd | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:29.13 | |||
| Olympic Games | London, United Kingdom | 6th (sf) | 800 m | 2:01.70 | ||
| 2013 | Central American and Caribbean Championships | Morelia, México | 3rd | 800m | 2:03.10 A | |
| World Championships | Moscow, Russia | 11th (sf) | 800 m | 2:00.98 | ||
| 2014 | Pan American Sports Festival | Mexico City, Mexico | bgcolor=gold | 1st | 800 m | 2:03.56 A |
| Central American and Caribbean Games | Xalapa, Mexico | bgcolor=gold | 1st | 800 m | 2:00.79 A | |
| 2015 | World Championships | Beijing, China | 20th (sf) | 800 m | 2:00.38 | |
| 2016 | World Indoor Championships | Portland, United States | 16th (h) | 800 m | 2:08.07 | |
| Olympic Games | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | 26th (h) | 800 m | 2:00.50 | ||
| 2017 | World Championships | London, United Kingdom | 8th (sf) | 800 m | 1:59.79 | |
| Universiade | Taipei, Taiwan | bgcolor=gold | 1st | 800 m | 2:02.21 | |
| 2018 | Central American and Caribbean Games | Barranquilla, Colombia | bgcolor=gold | 1st | 800 m | 2:01.63 |
| bgcolor=gold | 1st | 1500 m | 4:22.14 | |||
| bgcolor=gold | 1st | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:32.61 | |||
| NACAC Championships | Toronto, Canada | 3rd | 800 m | 2:00.15 | ||
| 2019 | Pan American Games | Lima, Peru | bgcolor=silver | 2nd | 800 m | 2:01.64 |
| 7th | 1500 m | 4:14.81 | ||||
| 4th | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:30.89 | ||||
| World Championships | Doha, Qatar | 13th (sf) | 800 m | 2:01.18 | ||
| 13th (h) | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:29.84 | ||||
| 2021 | World Relays | Chorzów, Poland | bgcolor=gold | 1st | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:28.41 |
| Olympic Games | Tokyo, Japan | 11th (sf) | 800 m | 1:59.65 | ||
| 8th | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:26.92 | ||||
| 2022 | World Championships | Eugene, United States | 27th (h) | 800 m | 2:01.96 | |
| 2023 | ALBA Games | Caracas, Venezuela | bgcolor=gold | 1st | 800 m | 1:59.69 |
| bgcolor=gold | 1st | 1500 m | 4:25.69 | |||
| bgcolor=gold | 1st | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:33.37 | |||
| Central American and Caribbean Games | San Salvador, El Salvador | bgcolor=gold | 1st | 800 m | 2:01.75 | |
| bgcolor=gold | 1st | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:26.08 | |||
| World Championships | Budapest, Hungary | 38th (h) | 800 m | 2:01.33 | ||
| 13th (h) | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:29.70 | ||||
| Pan American Games | Santiago, Chile | 4th | 800 m | 2:03.68 | ||
| 2024 | Olympic Games | Paris, France | 17th (sf) | 800 m | 1:58.73 | |