Published Aug 6, 2024
Brittany Brown Wins Bronze Medal in 200 Meters at Olympics
Ross Binder  •  Hawkeye Beacon
Managing Editor

First Olympics? Check.

First Olympic final? Check.

First Olympic medal? Check.

Former Iowa track star Brittany Brown turned heads as she made the U.S. Olympic team with a standout performance at the Olympic Team Trials in June. Two months later, she dazzled again in the Olympics -- and came away with a bronze medal in the 200-meter race.

Advertisement
info icon
Embed content not availableManage privacy settings

Brown ran a 22.20 to finish behind fellow American Gabby Thomas, who raced past the rest of the field to win the gold medal (21.83), and St. Lucia's Julien Alfred, who won silver here (22.08) after winning gold in the 100-meter race earlier in the Olympics.

It was an impressive road to Tuesday's final for Brown, who won both her initial heat on Sunday (with a time of 22.38) and her semifinal on Monday (with a time of 22.12). She had the fourth-best time among the eight qualifiers for the final.

info icon
Embed content not availableManage privacy settings

By claiming the bronze medal, Brown set some Hawkeye history as well -- she became the first woman in program history to win an individual medal in track and field at the Olympics.

info icon
Embed content not availableManage privacy settings

That's a tremendous -- and well-deserved -- honor for a woman who's been an outstanding competitor, both for the Hawkeyes and now for the United States at the international level. Brown was an 11-time All-American during her Iowa career from 2014 to 2018 and won a Big Ten Championship in the 200-meter race in 2017.

Post-Iowa, she's had success in international competition as well, highlighted by a silver medal at the World Championships in 2019 and a gold medal at the North American, Central American, and Caribbean Championships in 2022. Now she can add Olympic bronze to that list of accomplishments.