View source for Randy Givens

{{short description|American sprinter}}
{{MedalTableTop|sport= Women's [[Athletics (sport)|athletics]]|country_code=USA|medals=
{{Medal|Competition|[[Pan American Games]]}}
{{Medal|Gold |[[1983 Pan American Games|1983 Caracas]]|[[Athletics at the 1983 Pan American Games|200 m]]}}
{{Medal|Gold |[[1983 Pan American Games|1983 Caracas]]|[[Athletics at the 1983 Pan American Games|4×100 m relay]]}}
{{Medal|Silver|[[1987 Pan American Games|1987 Indianapolis]]|[[Athletics at the 1987 Pan American Games|200 m]]}}
{{Medal|Competition|[[Universiade]]}}
{{Medal|Silver|[[1983 Summer Universiade|1983 Edmonton]]|[[Athletics at the 1983 Summer Universiade|100 m]]}}
{{Medal|Gold |[[1983 Summer Universiade|1983 Edmonton]]|[[Athletics at the 1983 Summer Universiade|200 m]]}}
{{Medal|Gold |[[1983 Summer Universiade|1983 Edmonton]]|[[Athletics at the 1983 Summer Universiade|4×100 m relay]]}}
}}
'''  Randy Jenelle Givens ''' (born March 27, 1962) is an American former [[track and field]] athlete who competed in [[sprint (running)|sprint]]ing events. She set personal bests of 11.06 seconds for the [[100-meter dash]] and 22.31 seconds for the [[200-meter dash]]. Givens was a 200&nbsp;m finalist at the [[1984 Summer Olympics|1984 Olympic Games]] and represented her country at the [[1983 World Championships in Athletics]]. She was the 200&nbsp;m gold medalist at the [[1983 Pan American Games]] and returned to win a silver medal at the [[1987 Pan American Games|1987 edition]].

Givens established herself as a college athlete with the [[Florida State Seminoles]] and won four sprint titles (two individual, two relay) at the [[NCAA Women's Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships|NCAA Women's Championships]] in 1984. She was also a multiple medalist at the [[1983 Summer Universiade]], taking 200&nbsp;m and relay gold medals and a 100&nbsp;m silver medal.

==Early life and college==
Born in [[Alexandria, Louisiana]],<ref name=SR>{{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/gi/randy-givens-1.html |title=Randy Givens |access-date=2015-07-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200418045041/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/gi/randy-givens-1.html |archive-date=2020-04-18}}</ref> she grew up in [[Amityville, New York]] and attended [[Amityville Memorial High School]]. She went on to attend [[Florida State University]] from 1980 to 1984 and competed for their [[Florida State Seminoles]] collegiate team. The team was very successful during the period which also included Olympic medalist sprinters [[Marita Payne]] and [[Michelle Finn-Burrell|Michelle Finn]]. Givens' first competitions were in the [[Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women]] (AIAW) conference, which was a women's counterpart to the then-male dominated [[National Collegiate Athletic Association]] (NCAA). At the AIAW indoor championships in 1981 she made the [[300-meter dash]] final then won her first title, anchoring the Seminoles to victory in the [[4×200-meter relay]]. She repeated that feat in the [[4×100-meter relay]] at the AIAW outdoor meet, where she also placed third in the [[200-meter dash]]. The following year she came third in the 300&nbsp;m indoors and anchored the team to the runner-up spot in the [[880-yard relay]].<ref name=NF>[http://www.nolefan.org/hof/givens_randy.html Randy Givens]. NoleFan. Retrieved on 2015-07-08.</ref><ref name=FSU>[http://www.seminoles.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=32900&ATCLID=209574048 Randy Givens]. Seminoles. Retrieved on 2015-07-08.</ref>

NCAA track competition for women was instituted in 1982 and Givens competed at the [[NCAA Women's Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships]]. There she placed third in the 200&nbsp;m, seventh in the [[100-meter dash]], and was a member of both the second-placed 4×100-meter and [[4×400-meter relay]] teams. This performance helped the [[Florida State Seminoles track and field]] team to third place in the college rankings at the championship. She also won the collegiate 100&nbsp;m at the [[Penn Relays]] that season. At the 1983 NCAA Championships she was again third in the 200&nbsp;m, improved one place to sixth in the 100&nbsp;m, and claimed both relay titles, resulting in a runner-up team finish for the Seminoles behind the [[UCLA Bruins]].<ref name=NF/><ref name=FSU/>

The peak of her collegiate track career came at the [[1984 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships]]. She achieved a sprint quadruple by winning the 100&nbsp;m, 200&nbsp;m, 4 × 100 m relay and [[mile relay]] titles. The Florida State women comfortably won their first NCAA title, over twenty points ahead of the [[Tennessee Volunteers track and field|Tennessee Volunteers]].<ref name=NF/><ref name=FSU/><ref>Sumner, Jim (2008-06-11). [https://web.archive.org/web/20120307215021/http://www.theacc.com/sports/c-track/spec-rel/061108aac.html Looking Back... Florida State's Outdoor Success in 1984]. The AAC. Retrieved on 2015-07-08.</ref><ref>[http://www.gbrathletics.com/nc/ncaaw.htm NCAA Division I Championships (Women)]. GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2015-07-08.</ref> Givens was that year's Broderick Award (now the [[Honda Sports Award]]) winner in the track and field section.<ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=336&dat=19841103&id=aDxTAAAAIBAJ&sjid=YoMDAAAAIBAJ&pg=1590,964173&hl=en Marsden Named Top Collegiate Gymnast]. ''The Deseret News'' (1984-11-03). Retrieved on 2015-07-08.</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://seminoles.com/randy-givens-bio/|title=Randy Givens Bio|date=2014-06-17|website=Florida State Seminoles|language=en-US|access-date=2020-03-27}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.collegiatewomensportsawards.com/archives/trackfield|title=Track & Field|website=CWSA|language=en|access-date=2020-03-27}}</ref>

During her time at Florida State she set school records in the 100&nbsp;m (11.06 seconds) and 200&nbsp;m (22.31), as well as the indoor 300-yard dash and 300-meter dash. As of 2015, all the latter three times remain the school records for Florida State.<ref name=NF/> She also set five records at the Penn relays, in the 100&nbsp;m and both relays.<ref>[http://www.thepennrelays.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=1720&ATCLID=205123075 A Relays Birthday: Randy Givens - March 27, 1962] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150709214926/http://www.thepennrelays.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=1720&ATCLID=205123075 |date=July 9, 2015 }}. Penn Relays (2011-03-27). Retrieved on 2015-07-08.</ref> She was inducted into the [[Florida State Athletic Hall of Fame]] in 1989.<ref name=NF/>

During her post-collegiate career she was a member of the Puma Track Club.<ref name="SR"/>

==National and international career==
Givens was a frequent finalist at the [[USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships]], coming fifth in the 200&nbsp;m in 1980 and 1981, then reaching her first national podium in 1982 with a third-place finish. At the 1983 USA Championships she ran a lifetime best of 22.31 seconds to place fourth in the 200&nbsp;m and was also fifth over 100&nbsp;m. At the [[1984 United States Olympic Trials (track and field)|1984 United States Olympic Trials]] she came third in the 200&nbsp;m, earning Olympic selection, and was again ranked fifth over 100&nbsp;m. After missing the 1985 season, she had her highest national placing at the [[1986 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships]], taking second place to [[Pam Marshall]]. In the last national final of her career, she came eighth over 200&nbsp;m in 1987.<ref name=Brink>[http://trackfield.brinkster.net/Profile.asp?ID=871&Gender=W Randy Givens]. Track and Field Brinkster. Retrieved on 2015-07-08.</ref>

Givens' international career overlapped with her time at college. She competed at the highest level of student sport at the [[Athletics at the 1983 Summer Universiade|1983 Summer Universiade]] and came away with a gold medal in the 200&nbsp;m (ahead of schoolmate Marita Payne), becoming the first American to win that title. She was also silver medalist behind [[Beverly Kinch]] in the 100&nbsp;m, and claimed a second gold medal in the 4×100&nbsp;m relay.<ref>[http://www.gbrathletics.com/ic/wsgw.htm World Student Games (Universiade - Women)]. GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2015-07-08.</ref>

After a strong performance at the national championships she was chosen for the inaugural [[1983 World Championships in Athletics]]. Her time of 23.01 seconds to win her heat was briefly the [[List of World Championships in Athletics records|championship record]].<ref>[http://trackfield.brinkster.net/RecProgression.asp?RecCode=WC&EventCode=WA2&P=F Main > Women, 200 m > World Championships Records Progression]. Track and Field Brinkster. Retrieved on 2015-07-08.</ref> Givens reached the semi-finals of the [[200 metres at the World Championships in Athletics]] and ranked 13th overall.<ref>[http://www.iaaf.org/athletes/united-states/randy-givens-65542#honours Randy Givens Honours]. IAAF. Retrieved on 2015-07-08.</ref> She was also part of the relay team at the meet, but the American women did not perform to their usual high standard and were eliminated in the first round, one hundredth of a second behind Canada. The [[Athletics at the 1983 Pan American Games|1983 Pan American Games]] followed shortly after that same month and Givens won the 200&nbsp;m title, succeeding [[Evelyn Ashford]], and also shared in the 4×100&nbsp;m relay gold medals with [[Jackie Washington (athlete)|Jackie Washington]], [[Alice Jackson]] and college teammate [[Brenda Cliette]].<ref>Siddons, Larry (1983-08-29). [https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1314&dat=19830829&id=51dWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=6-4DAAAAIBAJ&pg=6760,7756622&hl=en Us Sprints To Pan Am Finish]. ''The Spokesman-Review''. Retrieved on 2015-07-08.</ref>

A third-place finish at the Olympic Trials earned her the right to compete at the [[Athletics at the 1984 Summer Olympics|1984 Los Angeles Olympics]]. There she steadily improved through the [[Athletics at the 1984 Summer Olympics – Women's 200 metres|Olympic 200&nbsp;m rounds]] and placed sixth in the final with a time of 22.36 seconds – the second-fastest of her career.<ref name=SR/>

After graduating from Florida State, Givens appeared in two further major international competitions. At the [[Athletics at the 1986 Goodwill Games|1986 Goodwill Games]] she came fifth over 200&nbsp;m and was a 4×100&nbsp;m relay gold medalist alongside Michelle Finn, [[Diane Williams (athlete)|Diane Williams]] and Evelyn Ashford.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120206233839/http://goodwillgames.com/html/past_1986athletics.html 1986  Athletics Results]. Goodwill Games. Retrieved on 2015-07-08.</ref> She returned to defend her 200&nbsp;m title at the [[Athletics at the 1987 Pan American Games|1987 Pan American Games]] held in [[Indianapolis]], but was beaten into second place by her compatriot [[Gwen Torrence]].<ref>Holbreich, Curt (1987-08-16). [https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-08-16-sp-1903-story.html THE 1987 PAN AMERICAN GAMES : Track and Field : Foster Has Another Unexpected Hurdle Cost Him a Victory]. ''Los Angeles Times''. Retrieved on 2015-07-08.</ref>

==Personal records==
*[[100-meter dash]] – 11.06 seconds (1984)
*[[200-meter dash]] – 22.31 seconds (1983)

==National titles==
*[[NCAA Women's Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships]]
**100-meter dash: 1984
**200-meter dash: 1984
**4×100-meter dash: 1983, 1984
**4×400-meter/mile relay: 1983, 1984

==International competitions==
{| {{AchievementTable|Event=yes}}
|-
|rowspan=7|1983
|rowspan=3|[[Athletics at the 1983 Summer Universiade|Universiade]]
|rowspan=3|[[Edmonton]], Canada
|bgcolor=silver|2nd
|100 m
|11.16{{AthAbbr|w}}
|-
|bgcolor=gold|1st
|200 m
|22.47
|-
|bgcolor=gold|1st
|4 × 100 m relay
|42.82
|-
|rowspan=2|[[1983 World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]]
|rowspan=2|[[Helsinki]], Finland
|13th
|[[1983 World Championships in Athletics – Women's 200 metres|200 m]]
|23.34
|-
|9th
|[[1983 World Championships in Athletics – Women's 4 × 100 metres relay|4 × 100 m relay]]
|44.20
|-
|rowspan=2|[[Athletics at the 1983 Pan American Games|Pan American Games]]
|rowspan=2|[[Caracas]], Venezuela
|bgcolor=gold|1st
|200 m
|23.14
|-
|bgcolor=gold|1st
|4 × 100 m relay
|43.21
|-
|1984
|[[Athletics at the 1984 Summer Olympics|Olympic Games]]
|[[Los Angeles]], United States
|6th
|[[Athletics at the 1984 Summer Olympics – Women's 200 metres|200 m]]
|22.36
|-
|rowspan=2|1986
|rowspan=2|[[Athletics at the 1986 Goodwill Games|Goodwill Games]]
|rowspan=2|[[Moscow]], Russia
|5th
|200 m
|22.61
|-
|bgcolor=gold|1st
|4 × 100 m relay
|42.12
|-
|1987
|[[Athletics at the 1987 Pan American Games|Pan American Games]]
|[[Indianapolis]], United States
|bgcolor=silver|2nd
|200 m
|22.71{{AthAbbr|w}}
|}

{{Portal bar|Biography|New York (state)|United States|Olympics}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*{{World Athletics}}

{{Footer Pan American Champions 200m Women}}
{{Footer Universiade Champions 200m Women}}
{{Footer USA Track & Field 1984 Summer Olympics}}
{{Honda Sports Award}}

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Givens, Randy}}
[[Category:1962 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Alexandria, Louisiana]]
[[Category:People from Amityville, New York]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Suffolk County, New York]]
[[Category:Track and field athletes from Louisiana]]
[[Category:Track and field athletes from New York (state)]]
[[Category:American female sprinters]]
[[Category:African-American track and field athletes]]
[[Category:Olympic track and field athletes for the United States]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1984 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:World Athletics Championships athletes for the United States]]
[[Category:Florida State Seminoles women's track and field athletes]]
[[Category:Universiade medalists in athletics (track and field)]]
[[Category:FISU World University Games gold medalists for the United States]]
[[Category:FISU World University Games silver medalists for the United States]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1983 Summer Universiade]]
[[Category:Competitors at the 1986 Goodwill Games]]
[[Category:Goodwill Games medalists in athletics]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1983 Pan American Games]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1987 Pan American Games]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1983 Pan American Games]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1987 Pan American Games]]
[[Category:Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States in athletics (track and field)]]
[[Category:Pan American Games silver medalists for the United States in athletics (track and field)]]
[[Category:Olympic female sprinters]]
[[Category:21st-century African-American sportspeople]]
[[Category:21st-century African-American sportswomen]]
[[Category:21st-century American sportswomen]]
[[Category:20th-century African-American sportspeople]]
[[Category:20th-century African-American sportswomen]]
[[Category:20th-century American sportswomen]]
[[Category:NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners]]