Marita Payne
Encyclopedia
Marita Payne-Wiggins (born October 7, 1960 in Barbados
) is a Canadian
athlete who competed in two consecutive Summer Olympics for Canada, starting in 1984. She ran for Florida State University
. She remains the co-Canadian record holder over the 400 metres
with her time of 49.91 seconds, along with Jillian Richardson
.
She came to international prominence in 1983: she took the 200 metres
silver medal behind Randy Givens at the 1983 Universiade
and competed at the inaugural 1983 World Championships in Athletics
shortly afterwards. At the championships in Helsinki
she finished fifth in the women's 400 metres
– the best performance by a non-European athlete in the discipline. She also teamed up with her Canadian compatriots in the 4 x 100 metres relay
and 4 x 400 metres relay
events, where they finished fifth and fourth in the finals, respectively.
At the 1984 Summer Olympics
held in Los Angeles
, United States
she won the silver medal in the 4 x 400 metres with her team mates Charmaine Crooks
, Jillian Richardson
and Molly Killingbeck
. She also competed with her teammates Angela Bailey
, Angella Taylor-Issajenko and France Gareau
in the 4 x 100 metres in which the team finished second, beaten again by the hosts United States
. She finished fourth in the individual 400 m at the games.
She helped the Canadian 4 x 400 metres relay team to the gold medal at the 1986 Commonwealth Games
. She reached the semi-finals of the 400 m at the 1987 World Championships in Athletics
and, along with Crooks, Killingbeck and Richardson, she took Canada to fourth position in the 4 x 400 metres relay. The team reunited for the 1988 Summer Olympics
, but failed to finish in the final of the relay.
Outside of the global events, she won silver medals in the 4 x 400 metres relay at the 1983
and 1987 Pan American Games
.
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
) is a Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
athlete who competed in two consecutive Summer Olympics for Canada, starting in 1984. She ran for Florida State University
Florida State University
The Florida State University is a space-grant and sea-grant public university located in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a comprehensive doctoral research university with medical programs and significant research activity as determined by the Carnegie Foundation...
. She remains the co-Canadian record holder over the 400 metres
400 metres
The 400 metres, or 400 metre dash, is a common sprinting event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 . On a standard outdoor running track, it is exactly one lap around the track. Runners start in staggered positions and...
with her time of 49.91 seconds, along with Jillian Richardson
Jillian Richardson
Jillian Richardson is a Canadian athlete who competed mainly in the 400 metres....
.
She came to international prominence in 1983: she took the 200 metres
200 metres
A 200 metres race is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 m track, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques are needed to successfully run the race. A slightly shorter race, called the stadion and run on a straight track, was the first...
silver medal behind Randy Givens at the 1983 Universiade
Athletics at the 1983 Summer Universiade
The Athletics Tournament at the 1983 Summer Universiade took place in the Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton, Alberta in July 1983, shortly before the inaugural World Championships in Helsinki, Finland. New events were the men's and women's marathon.-Men's events:-Women's events:-References:* *...
and competed at the inaugural 1983 World Championships in Athletics
1983 World Championships in Athletics
The inaugural World Championships in Athletics were run under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations and were held at the Olympic Stadium in Helsinki, Finland between August 7 and August 14, 1983....
shortly afterwards. At the championships in Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
she finished fifth in the women's 400 metres
1983 World Championships in Athletics – Women's 400 metres
These are the official results of the Women's 400 metres event at the 1983 IAAF World Championships in Helsinki, Finland. There were a total number of 35 participating athletes, with five qualifying heats and the final held on Wednesday 10 August 1983....
– the best performance by a non-European athlete in the discipline. She also teamed up with her Canadian compatriots in the 4 x 100 metres relay
4 x 100 metres relay
The 4 × 100 metres relay or sprint relay is an athletics track event run in lanes over one lap of the track with four runners completing 100 metres each. The first runners begin in the same stagger as for the individual 400 m race...
and 4 x 400 metres relay
4 x 400 metres relay
The 4 x 400 meters relay or long relay is an athletics track event in which teams comprise four runners who each complete 400 meters or one lap. It is traditionally the final event of a track meet. At top class events, the first 500 meters is run in lanes...
events, where they finished fifth and fourth in the finals, respectively.
At the 1984 Summer Olympics
1984 Summer Olympics
The 1984 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Los Angeles, California, United States in 1984...
held in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
she won the silver medal in the 4 x 400 metres with her team mates Charmaine Crooks
Charmaine Crooks
Charmaine Crooks , is a Canadian athlete, five-time Olympian and Olympic Silver Medalist . Charmaine was born in Mandeville, Jamaica, but represented Canada for close to 20 years in athletics...
, Jillian Richardson
Jillian Richardson
Jillian Richardson is a Canadian athlete who competed mainly in the 400 metres....
and Molly Killingbeck
Molly Killingbeck
Molly Killingbeck is a Canadian athlete who competed in two consecutive Summer Olympics for Canada, starting in 1984....
. She also competed with her teammates Angela Bailey
Angela Bailey
Angela Bailey is a former Canadian track and field athlete.-Career:Angela Bailey is the current Canadian Record Holder in the 100 metres. She holds the record in a time of 10.98 seconds. At the time that record gave her a ranking of fourth in the world...
, Angella Taylor-Issajenko and France Gareau
France Gareau
France Gareau is a Canadian athlete who competed mainly in the 100 metres.She competed for Canada in the 1984 Summer Olympics held in Los Angeles, USA in the 4 x 100 metres where she won the silver medal with her team mates Angela Bailey, Marita Payne and Angella Taylor-Issajenko.-References:*...
in the 4 x 100 metres in which the team finished second, beaten again by the hosts United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. She finished fourth in the individual 400 m at the games.
She helped the Canadian 4 x 400 metres relay team to the gold medal at the 1986 Commonwealth Games
Athletics at the 1986 Commonwealth Games
At the 1986 Commonwealth Games, the athletics events were held at the Meadowbank Stadium in Edinburgh, Scotland. A total of 41 events were contested, of which 23 by male and 18 by female athletes....
. She reached the semi-finals of the 400 m at the 1987 World Championships in Athletics
1987 World Championships in Athletics
The 2nd World Championships in Athletics under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations were held in the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, Italy between August 28 and September 6, 1987.-Track:1983 | 1987 | 1991 | 1993 | 1995...
and, along with Crooks, Killingbeck and Richardson, she took Canada to fourth position in the 4 x 400 metres relay. The team reunited for the 1988 Summer Olympics
Athletics at the 1988 Summer Olympics
At the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul a total number of 42 events in athletics were contested: 24 by men and 18 by women. There were a total number of 1617 participating athletes from 149 countries.-Men's events:...
, but failed to finish in the final of the relay.
Outside of the global events, she won silver medals in the 4 x 400 metres relay at the 1983
Athletics at the 1983 Pan American Games
The Athletics Competition at the 1983 Pan American Games was held in Caracas, Venezuela.-Men's Events:-Women's Events:-Medal table:-References:*...
and 1987 Pan American Games
Athletics at the 1987 Pan American Games
The Athletics Competition at the 1987 Pan American Games was held in Indianapolis, United States. The events were competed at the IU Indianapolis Track and Soccer Stadium.-Men's events:-Women's events:-Medal table:-References:*...
.