Michelle Atherley
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American |
| Born | 9 December 1995 |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Athletics |
| Event(s) | Heptathlon, Pentathlon |
| Achievements and titles | |
| Personal best(s) | Heptathlon 6465 (Götzis, 2024) Pentathlon 1117 (Birmingham, 2019) |
Michelle Atherley (born 9 December 1995) is an American heptathlete. She competed at the 2022 World Athletics Championships and was the winner of the World Athletics Combined Events Tour in 2024.[1]
Early and personal life
She is from South Florida, her mother died when she an infant and was later adopted by her step mother after her father also died. She played numerous sports growing up, including gymnastics and soccer. She studied Political Science at the University of Miami, where she was a roommate of Ebony Morrison.[2][3]
Career
NCAA
Competing for the University of Auburn, she was the only freshman to qualify for the 2016 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships. As a sophomore at the University of Miami, she won the ACC Championships in 2017.[3] Competing for the University of Miami, she won the NCAA Indoor Pentathlon Championships in Birmingham, Alabama in 2019, the only University of Miami athlete to win an NCAA Pentathlon Championship.[2] That year, she was also the ACC Outdoor Heptathlon champion and was named the ACC Indoor Field MVP and the ACC Scholar of the Year.[4]
Pro career
She finished third at the USATF Combined Events Championships but won the NACAC Combined Events Championships in Ottawa, in May 2022.[5][6] She competed in the heptathlon at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon.[2]
In August 2023, she scored 6079 pints to win the heptathlon at the Thorpe Cup in Marburg, Germany.[7]
She set a new personal best heptathlon tally of 6372 points to win at the Mt. Sac Relays in April 2024.[8] She placed third on the heptathlon at the Hypo-Meeting in Götzis, Austria in May 2024 with a personal best score of 6465 points.[9][10] She finished fourth in the US Olympic Trials heptathlon competition in Eugene, Oregon in June 2024.[11] She finished in third place in the heptathlon at the Decastar meeting in Talence, France in September 2024.[12] That month, she was confirmed as the winner of the 2024 World Athletics Combined Events Tour.[13]
She finished fourth in the heptathlon at the Hypo-Meeting in Götzis in 2025.[14][15] She finished third at Décastar in July 2025 with 6283 points.[16]
References
- ^ "Michelle Atherley". World Athletics. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
- ^ a b c "'Ready to fight': South Florida track and field heptathlete vies for spot on Team USA". NBC Miami. 28 May 2024. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
- ^ a b Zerpa, Alina (March 8, 2017). "ACC champion Michelle Atherley dominates the track, stays humble". The Miami Hurricane. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
- ^ Didio, Isabella (October 14, 2019). "After competing in Thorpe Cup, Michelle Atherley is aiming for 2020 Olympics". The Miami Hurricane. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
- ^ "NACAC Combined Events Championships". World Athletics. 15 May 2022. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
- ^ "Scantling and Hall impress to win US combined events titles". World Athletics. 6 May 2022. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
- ^ "UNITED STATES EARNS FIRST TEAM SWEEP IN GERMANY IN THORPE CUP HISTORY; MICHELLE ATHERLEY TRIUMPHS FOR AMERICANS, FELIX WOLTER WINS AT HOME". Runnerspace. 13 August 2023. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
- ^ "AYDEN OWENS-DELERME ACHIEVES DECATHLON MEET RECORD AT MT. SAC RELAYS, JOINS HEPTATHLETE MICHELLE ATHERLEY IN PRODUCING WORLD-LEADING MARKS". Runnerspace. 19 April 2024. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
- ^ Dickinson, Marley (21 May 2024). "Damian Warner wins his eighth Götzis Hypomeeting in Austria". Running Magazine. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
- ^ "Hypomeeting". World Athletics. 18 May 2024. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
- ^ Choate, Campbell (28 June 2024). "U.S. Olympic Track And Field Trials Results Day 4". Flo Track. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
- ^ "Erm back on top at Decastar". European Athletics. 16 September 2024. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
- ^ "Atherley and Erm win World Athletics Combined Events Tour". World Athletics. 17 Sep 2024. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
- ^ "Hypo-Meeting". World Athletics. 1 June 2025. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
- ^ "ANNA HALL'S FOUR PRS RESULT IN NO. 2 ALL-TIME HEPTATHLON SCORE AT 50TH HYPO-MEETING AT GOTZIS". Runnerspace. 1 June 2025. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
- ^ "Owens-Delerme wins decathlon, Araujo retains heptathlon title in Talence". World Athletics. 6 July 2025. Retrieved 7 July 2025.