In the Spotlight: Perri Shakes-Drayton
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Perri Shakes-Drayton
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Gagandeep Bedi 16 July 2012
As the countdown to London 2012 continues, UK Sport’s In the Spotlight will focus on a different Olympic or Paralympic athlete each week. This week, athlete, Perri Shakes-Drayton.
| Name | Perri Shakes-Drayton |
| Lives | London |
| Sport | Athletics |
| National governing body | UK Athletics |
| National Lottery funded since | 2011 |
| Funding Award for UK Athletics (2009-13) |
£25,148,000 |
Career Highlights
2009 Gold, 400m hurdles, European u23 Championships
2010 Bronze, 400m, European Championships
2010 Bronze, 4x400m hurdles, European Championships
2011 National Champion, 400m
2011 National Champion, 4x400m hurdles
2012 Gold, 4x400m relay, World Indoor Championships
Perri burst onto the athletics scene at a young age, setting the UK junior record in the 400m hurdles. After her first international appearance at the 2006 World Junior Championships, she returned in 2007 to take silver with a record of 56.46 seconds. Shakes-Drayton narrowly missed out on attaining an ‘A’ standard that would’ve taken her to Beijing 2008, however, at the European U23 Champions in Kaunas, she took gold in the 400m hurdles.
She has continued to grow, taking a bronze medal in both the 400m hurdles and 4x400m relay at the 2010 European Championships in Barcelona, finishing the final with a PB of 54.18 seconds and gaining a fan in Olympic champion Sally Gunnell.
In 2011 she graduated from Brunel University whilst also becoming the first person to hold both domestic titles of the 400m and 400m hurdles. The run up to London 2012 has also been a success, with Perri winning gold in 4x400m relay at the 2012 World Indoors Championship and most recently gold at the London Grand Prix.
Interact with Perri Shakes-Drayton
Twitter: @Shakesdrayton
Website: http://perrishakesdrayton.com/
In the News
‘Perri Shakes-Drayton talks about her olympic hopes’
‘Shakes-Drayton willing to wait’
