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Natalie Gray Profile Page
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| Natalie Gray | |
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| I am currently studying a masters degree at the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA in Physical Education and Coaching. | |
| I am a middle distance athlete. I compete at cross country running in the winter and 5000m/1000m on the track in the summer. | |
| I started competitive running at the age of 14 when I competed in the Biathle (an event consisting of a continuous 1,000m run, followed by a 200m sea swim, and finally by another 1,000m run). I gained international representation as a junior representing Great Britain in three World Championships in Bonn (2001), Monaco (2003) and Monaco (2005). After leading the run component at the World Biathle Championships, my former coach Peter Benchley advised me that I should concentrate my efforts on middle distance running and I joined Medway and Maidstone Athletics Club. I immediately excelled at cross country and gained selection to represent my county in the inter-county events. Within the last couple of years I have improved considerably by achieving numerous representations for both England and Great Britain at cross country running. | |
| Since the age of 14 years old. | |
| My coach is Bill Foster | |
| In December 2009 I qualified to run for Great Britain in the SPAR European Cross Country Championships held in Dublin on 13th December 2009 and finished 18th. I helped our Under23 junior team win team gold and we are now European Champions. My cross country season improved further when I gained my first senior England vest to run in the Home Countries International cross country on 27th March and finished 4th. I then qualified to run for Great Britain again in the World University Cross Country Championships, held in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, on 11 April 2010. I was extremely pleased at finishing 8th individually and winning team gold making us World Student Champions.
I am also very proud of my achievements this year on the track where I finished 6th place in the Aviva European Trials and Senior UK Championships 5,000m race, as televised on BBC1 on 27 June 2010. My best 5,000m performance of 16.18mins this year ranks me 4th nationally in the under23 age group (as seen by the power of 10 national rankings) and 19th in the country at senior level. |
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| My ultimate goal is to excel at the longer distances of 10,000m and marathon. Now the prospect of making the London 2012 Olympic team for 10,000m is very realistic, making this is my short-term goal, with long term aspirations of running the marathon in the 2016 Olympics. | |
| Winning a European team Gold medal at the SPAR European Cross Country Championships in Dublin on 13th December 2009. |
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| I train twice a day, which includes a mixture of flat-out running sessions, recovery runs, circuit training, weights in the gym, running drills and core stability work. | |
| It would stop me worrying about having to pay for transportation costs to races, new trainers, and recovery aids such as medical treatment and recovery drinks. | |
| I am a young athlete who has shown through her achievements internationally this year that i have great talent at middle distance running with the potential to make the Great Britain team at the London 2012 Olympics. I hope to find consistent support for the next couple of years to allow me to continue to train full time and achieve my full potential. | |
| Paula Radcliffe is my hero because she has achieved such great feats in our sport such as setting the world marathon record of 2:15:25 in the London Marathon after undergoing numerous trials and tribulations through her athletics career; such as suffering | |
| I believe that enjoying the activity you are participating in has the greatest influence on achieving success in sport. If you enjoy your training, you will face each challenge in a more positive light and achieve greater improvement in performance. | |
| I enjoy most the feeling of pushing my body to its maximum in training sessions. This feeling of accomplishment and feeling physically exhausted at the end of a 60 minute cross country hills session really is one I love. I also enjoy the competitive challange of being able to run faster than my rivals in races. | |
| My scholarship with the University of New Mexico covers my education and accommodation, but does not cover transportation costs, maintenance costs and medical/travel insurance. | |
| Support of approximately £2,000 a year would allow me to continue training as a full time athlete, allowing me to improve to my full potential and qualify for the 2012 Olympics. |
