Tyra Gittens (born 6 June 1998) is an Olympic athlete from Trinidad and Tobago.[1] Gittens set 6 national records for Trinidad and Tobago indoor records in Pentathlon 4746 points, high jump 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in), and long jump 6.68 m (21 ft 11 in), Trinidad and Tobago outdoor records in Heptathlon 6418 points, high jump 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in), and long jump 6.96 m (22 ft 10 in).[2]
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Tyra Gittens |
| Born | 6 June 1998 Tunapuna–Piarco, Trinidad and Tobago |
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Track and Field |
| Event(s) | Long jump, High jump, Heptathlon |
| Turned pro | 2022 |
Her hometown is Saint Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago, and she went to high school in Nashville at The Ensworth School before attending Texas A&M University to complete a BA Degree and University of Texas at Austin to pursue a master's degree.[3]
In July 2017, Gittens broke her own national junior heptathlon record in winning the Pan American Combined Events Cup in Ottawa, Canada, gaining 5,490 points in the seven-discipline event to improve on the 5,337-point standard she had established in 2016.[4]
Competing in the long jump at the 2022 World Athletics Championships Gittens finished 19th in the qualifying heats with a best jump of 6.44m.[5] Gittens has had an ongoing Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) for treatment for ADHD. However, a failure to complete the application for a renewal of the TUE correctly led to a positive test for methylphenidate/ritalinic acid at the World Championships and a six-month doping violation ban.[6]
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Representing  Trinidad and Tobago | ||||||
| 2022 | Commonwealth Games | Birmingham, Great Britain | 11th | Long jump | 6.27 m (20 ft 7 in) | |
| 14th | High jump | 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||||
| World Athletics Championships | Eugene, United States | 19th | Long jump | 6.44 m (21 ft 2 in) | ||
| 2021 | Summer Olympics | Tokyo, Japan | 10th | Long jump | 6.60 m (21 ft 8 in) | |
| 2018 | NACAC Championships | Toronto, Canada | 4th | Long Jump | 6.25 m (20 ft 6 in) | |
| Central American and Caribbean Games | Barranquilla, Colombia | 8th | Heptathlon | DNF | ||
| 2017 | Pan American U20 Championships | Trujillo, Peru | 4th | heptathlon | 5229 points | |
| 3rd | Long Jump | 6.22 m (20 ft 5 in) | ||||
| CARIFTA Games U20 | Willemstad, Curaçao | 1st | heptathlon | 4854 points | ||
| 2nd | long jump | 6.10 m (20 ft 0 in) | ||||
| Canadian Athletics Championships U20 | Ottawa, Canada | 1st | heptathlon | 5490 points | ||
| 2016 | New Balance Nationals Outdoor | Greensboro, North Carolina | 2nd | heptathlon | 5164 points[7] | |
| 2015 | AAU Junior Olympic Games | Norfolk, Virginia | 2nd | Heptathlon | 4904 points | |
| 1st | High Jump | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||||
| 5th | Long Jump | 6.10 m (20 ft 0 in) | ||||
NCAA
Gittens is an 18-time NCAA Division 1 All-American, 3-time NCAA Champion, 5-time Southeastern Conference Champion, and 20-time All-SEC honoree.
Gittens won silver in the women’s long jump at the 2021 National Collegiate Athletic Association NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon.[8] She did however win gold in the heptathlon, despite the fact she injured her ankle in the days before the event.[9]
In June 2021, she was named to the US Track and Field Cross Country Association (USTFCCCA) National awards list, winning the Women's National Field Athlete of the Year award, as they stated that with ,,,her win at the SEC event she had become the third best performer in collegiate history in the heptathlon.[10]
In Texas on 14 May 2021 at SEC Outdoor Track and Field Championships, she jumped 6.96m to place her inside the top 10 for the year so far and set Trinidad and Tobago records in Heptathlon 6418 points, high jump 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in), and long jump 6.96 m (22 ft 10 in).[11] Her performance at the Southeastern Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships (SEC) in Texas, as well as attaining the Olympic standard for the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics in the long jump, she won silver in the women’s high jump competition with a height of 1.89m, she missed out on qualifying for the heptathlon at the 2020 Olympics on that day by just two points, accumulating 6,418 points in winning the seven-discipline event.[12]
In Fayetteville, Arkansas on 11 March 2021 at NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships, she jumped 6.68m to place her inside the top 10 for the year so far and set Trinidad and Tobago records in Pentathlon 4746 points, high jump 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in), and long jump 6.68 m (21 ft 11 in).[13]