Laia Forcadell
Laia Forcadell Arenas (born June 6, 1982 in Tortosa, Tarragona, Catalonia) is a female Spanish sprinter and hurdler.[1] She won the gold medal for the 400 m hurdles at the 2006 Ibero-American Championships in Ponce, Puerto Rico, and bronze at the 2010 Ibero-American Championships in San Fernando, Cádiz, Spain.[2]
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Laia Forcadell Arenas | ||||||||||||||||
| Nationality |  Spain | ||||||||||||||||
| Born | 6 June 1982 Tortosa, Tarragona, Catalonia, Spain | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) | ||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 59 kg (130 lb) | ||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Athletics | ||||||||||||||||
| Event(s) | 400 metres, 400 metres hurdles | ||||||||||||||||
| Club | ISS L'Hospitalet | ||||||||||||||||
| Coached by | Armando Álvarez Anaya | ||||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | |||||||||||||||||
| Personal best(s) | 400 m: 54.68 s (2008) 400 m hurdles: 56.24 s (2008) | ||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Forcadell represented Spain at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, where she competed for the women's 400 m hurdles. She ran in the fourth heat against six other athletes, including Poland's Anna Jesień and Czech Republic's Zuzana Hejnová, who were both considered top medal contenders in this event. She finished the race in last place by eighty-eight hundredths of a second (0.88) behind Trinidad and Tobago's Josanne Lucas, with a time of 58.64 seconds. Forcadell failed to advance into the semi-finals, as she placed twenty-sixth overall, and was ranked farther below three mandatory slots for the next round.[3]
Forcadell is a member of ISS L'Hospitalet Track Club in Barcelona, Spain, being coached and trained by Armando Álvarez Anaya.
Competition record
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Representing Spain | |||||
| 2003 | European U23 Championships | Bydgoszcz, Poland | 19th (h) | 400m hurdles | 88.69 |
| 2004 | World Indoor Championships | Budapest, Hungary | 11th (h) | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:38.01 |
| Ibero-American Championships | Huelva, Spain | 5th | 400 m hurdles | 57.72 | |
| 2005 | European Indoor Championships | Madrid, Spain | 5th | 4 × 400 m relay | 3:39.73 |
| Mediterranean Games | Almería, Spain | 9th (h) | 400 m hurdles | 57.78 | |
| 2006 | Ibero-American Championships | Ponce, Puerto Rico | 1st | 400 m hurdles | 57.26 |
| European Championships | Gothenburg, Sweden | 23rd (h) | 400 m hurdles | 57.81 | |
| 2007 | Universiade | Bangkok, Thailand | 13th (h) | 400 m hurdles | 58.93 |
| 2008 | Olympic Games | Beijing, China | 26th (h) | 400 m hurdles | 58.64 |
| 2009 | Mediterranean Games | Pescara, Italy | 6th | 400 m hurdles | 57.85 |
| European Championships | Berlin, Germany | 32nd (h) | 400 m hurdles | 58.57 | |
| 2010 | Ibero-American Championships | San Fernando, Spain | 3rd | 400 m hurdles | 57.73 |
| European Championships | Barcelona, Spain | 30th (h) | 400 m hurdles | 58.80 | |
References
- Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Laia Forcadell". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 13 December 2012.
- "Spain finishes second at Ibero-American Championships". European Athletics. Archived from the original on 14 April 2013. Retrieved 13 December 2012.
- "Women's 400m Hurdles Round 1 – Heat 4". NBC Olympics. Archived from the original on 21 August 2012. Retrieved 13 December 2012.
External links
