Clayton Murphy

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Clayton Murphy
Personal information
Nationality American
Born (1995-02-26) February 26, 1995 (age 29)
New Paris, Ohio
Sport
Sport Track
Event(s) 800 meters, 1500 meters
College team Akron
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s) 800 meters: 1:45.59[1]
1500 meters: 3:40.69[1]
Updated on August 15, 2015.

Clayton Murphy (born February 26, 1995) is an American middle-distance runner. He was the gold medalist in the 800-meter run at the 2015 Pan American Games. He runs collegiately for the Akron Zips.

Running career

High school

Clayton is the son of Mark and Melinda Murphy and raised in New Paris, Ohio. He attended Tri-Village High School[2] and began to take part in track and field and cross country running while there. Murphy broke the state record in the 1600 Meter Run at the 2013 state track meet in Columbus[3] in 4:11.72.[4]

Collegiate

He enrolled at the University of Akron in late 2013 and began to train with the Akron Zips college track team.[5] He is coached by the head distance coach, Lee Labadie, who is a sub 4 minute miler and a former runner for the University of Illinois. At the 2014 Mid-American Conference (MAC) indoor meet Clayton won the mile run and was runner-up over 3000 meters. He went on to win the outdoor conference title in the 1500 meters. He ran 3:44.53 minutes for the distance that year while winning at the Mt. SAC Relays.[6]

2015

He opened the following academic year (2015) with a fourth-place finish at the MAC Cross Country Championships, then followed this with a 800 m/mile double at the MAC Indoor meet. In February he ran a personal best and school record of 4:00.39 minutes for the indoor mile run.[5] On his national debut at the 2015 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships he claimed third place in the 800 m with a new best time of 1:47.06 minutes.[7] Similar results came outdoors, as he won a middle-distance double at the MAC Outdoor Championships and again placed third at the 2015 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships. He also won the 800 m at the Drake Relays and set a school record of 3:40.69 for the 1500 m.[5] Clayton earned a silver medal in the 800 meters at the 2015 North American, Central American and Caribbean Championships 2015 NACAC Championships were a regional track and field competition held at the Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica in San Jose, Costa Rica from August 7–9, 2015. Murphy finished 12th in 2015 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 800 metres.

National and international competitions

At the end of the college season he entered the 2015 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. He ran personal records in each round and ended the competition in fourth place with a time of 1:45.59 minutes[8] This earned him selection for the American squad for the Pan American Games. In his international debut – also his first time abroad – he surprised by winning the gold medal some four hundredths ahead of Colombia's Rafith Rodríguez, taking the lead in the final stretch. Murphy's roommate Ryan Martin was also a medalist in the event.[9] He was the first American in over 15 years to win the title, following on from Johnny Gray's 1999 victory.

Personal records

International competitions

Year Competition Venue Position Event Notes
2015 Pan American Games Toronto, Canada 1st 800 m 1:47.19
NACAC Championships San José, Costa Rica 2nd 800m 1:46.38

See also

References

External links