Maurice Greene (athlete)

Maurice Greene (athlete)

Maurice Greene (born July 23, 1974) is a retired American track and field sprinter who specialized in the 100 meters and 200 meters. He is a former 100 m world record holder with a time of 9.79 seconds. During the height of his career (1997–2004) he won four Olympic medals and was a five-time World Champion. This included three golds at the 1999 World Championships, a feat which had previously only been done by Carl Lewis and Michael Johnson and has since been equaled by three others.

His career was affected by a number of injuries from 2001 onwards, although he won the 100 meters bronze and silver in the sprint relay at the 2004 Summer Olympics. Greene was also successful indoors: he was the 1999 Indoor World Champion and remains the world record holder in the 60 meter dash and the joint-fastest man over 50 meters. He raced sparingly after an injury in 2005 and officially retired in 2008. Over his career, he made the second most sub-10 second runs (51) in the 100m (since surpassed by Asafa Powell).

Following his track career he has become an ambassador for the IAAF and a TV personality, appearing on Identity, Blind Date, and Dancing with the Stars. Most recently he was hired as a track coach at University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA).