Tamsyn Manou

Tamsyn Manou was born and raised in Melbourne, Victoria and attended Methodist Ladies' College and Caulfield Grammar School.[3] Her mother Carolyn Wright was a six time national high jump champion, while her father, Greg Lewis, was a semi-finalist in the 200 metres at the Mexico City Olympic Games.

Manou's athletics coaches have included Peter Fortune (Cathy Freeman's coach), Sebastian Coe and Daley Thompson. She married Australian cricketer Graham Manou in May 2011[2][4] and now competes under her married name.[5]

Manou emerged onto the national athletics scene in 1994, winning several events at the Australian Championships: the Under-16 100 m/200 m double and the Under-20 400 m. After these performances she was chosen, aged 15, for the 1994 Commonwealth Games as a 4 x 400 metres relay runner, though she did not eventually compete in the event.[6] Her next international selection was for the 1996 World Junior Championships in Sydney, where she won a bronze medal as part of the Australian 4 x 400 metres relay team.

In 1998, Manou moved up to the 800 metres distance, winning the National Championship and gaining a place in the 1998 Commonwealth Games team. Though she did not win a medal in the 800 m, she contributed to Australia's gold medal winning 4 × 400 m relay team.[6] She next ran internationally in the 800 metres and 4 x 400 metres relay at the 1999 World Indoor Championships in Maebashi. Here she set an Australian indoor record of 2m02.42 in her individual event and again won a medal as part of Australia's 4 x 400 metres relay team.

Leading into the 2000 Sydney Summer Olympics, Manou set new personal best times for 400 and 800 metres in qualifying for the Australian team. At the Olympics, she failed by less than a tenth of a second to reach the Olympic final in the 800 metres, but ran in Australia's 4 x 400 metres relay team which set two national records.

In the years after Sydney, Manou could not improve her personal best performances and gained a reputation as an underachiever in international competitions.[7] Manou stopped running the 800 m in 2005 to focus on the 400 m and develop her speed. She competed only in the 400 m at the 2006 Commonwealth Games, where she missed making the final, and in the 4 x 400 metres relay event, where she won her third successive gold medal amidst a major controversy, as part of the victorious Australian quartet.[6]

In 2007 Manou made a return to the 800 m distance under new coach, and brother, Justin Lewis, winning the 800 m national championships, placing in several European Meetings and qualifying for the 2007 IAAF World Championships in Athletics. In Osaka she finished fourth in her heat in 2.01.21 and was again unable to make the final.[6]

Manou enjoyed a return to her very best form in early 2008, remaining undefeated over 400 m and 800 metres in Australia.[8] She ran a personal best time of 51.44 to win the national 400 metres titles and comfortably retained her 800 metres crown.[8] These performances earned Tamsyn selection in a third consecutive Australian Olympic team.[2]

At the 2008 IAAF World Indoor Championships, held in Valencia, Spain, Manou qualified for the final running an Australian record of 2m01.85 in her heat. In a tactical final, Manou broke away from perennial champion Maria de Lurdes Mutola and Ukrainian Tetiana Petlyuk to win the gold medal in a major upset.[9] Manou said "I was wondering what I was doing out there. Then I realised that I could win the race. This is amazing. I still can't believe it."[9]

Manou represented Australia at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.[2] Here she made the semi final of the 800 m and narrowly missed qualifying for the semi final of the 400 m.

At the Australian National Championships in Brisbane 2009 Manou won both the 400 m and the 400 m Hurdles. She has won a total of 18 national titles.[10]

Manou has won a number of international medals in the 4 × 400 m relay:[6]

• At the 1996 World Junior Championships in Sydney, Manou, Rosemary Hayward, Josephine Fowley and Jennifer Marshall won a bronze medal, recording a time of 3m32.47.
• At the 1999 World Indoor Championships in Maebashi, Manou combined with Susan Andrews, Tania Van-Heer and Cathy Freeman to win a silver medal in an Australian record of 3m26.87.

Manou is also a three-time gold medal winner in the Commonwealth Games 4 × 400 m relay event.

• At Kuala Lumpur 1998, Manou joined Lee Naylor, Tania Van-Heer and Susan Andrews to win in a time of 3m27.28s.
• At Manchester 2002, Manou ran the third leg in a team which featured Olympic 400 m champion Cathy Freeman, Lauren Hewitt and, anchoring, 400 m hurdles champion Jana Pittman. Manou's leg saw Australia move from second into first place, and their time was a Games record 3m25.63s.
• At Melbourne 2006, Manou and her teammates Pittman, Caitlin Willis and Rosemary Hayward were second across the line being beaten by England; again Manou had run the third leg. After consultation with her fellow runners, both Manou and Pittman informed officials of a rule breach by England's Natasha Danvers (IAAF Rule 170 – Item 9), which the officials had already noted. England was subsequently disqualified and Australia awarded the gold medal; the time 3m28.66s. Afterwards, Australian track legend Ron Clarke called on the Australian team to return their gold medal.[11]

Manou began a media career with Melbourne radio station Triple M, as part of the 'Dead Set Legends' crew, in 2005.[12]

In 2006, she appeared on the Australian television series Dancing with the Stars. Partnered by Arsen Kishishian, Manou finished third.[13]

With Jules Lund and Ryan Shelton, Manou presented the Summer Fling breakfast show across the Austereo Today Network,[14] from December 2007.

Manou and Bruce McAvaney presented the athletics track events for the Seven Network at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.[15]

In 2004, Manou posed in bikinis for Ralph magazine, prompting criticism from the media for losing focus on her preparation for the Athens Olympics. After Manou failed to progress past the heats of her individual event, the 800 metres, she and her coaches defended the photoshoot saying it was undertaken in five hours on one day and was not to blame for her result.[16]

In February 2006, Manou and fellow Australian runner Jana Pittman were involved in a public feud after the Australian athletics trials for the 2006 Commonwealth Games.[17] Pittman, in answer to a media question following her heat win, had stated she had "no competition" in Australia; Manou responded "I was standing behind the blocks [for the final] going, 'I'll give you no competition, bitch.'" in a radio interview after she won the final with Pittman finishing last. The media later described their relationship as a "catfight" and a "bitchfight."[18]

In the 29 May 2006 edition of Australian "Zoo Weekly" magazine, Manou again posed in what Nova 100 afternoon DJ's described as "incredibly racy" lingerie. In the accompanying article, Manou went into detail about her relationship with Jana Pittman and the furore caused over comments by Pittman that the team should all return their medals.

In the lead-up to the Beijing Olympics she stated she would be running against drug cheats; "I have no doubts that when I line up next week, I will look left and right and know the other girls aren't all clean".[19]

• List of Caulfield Grammar School people

• IAAF profile for Tamsyn Manou
• Tamsyn Manou on IMDb
• Tamsyn Lewis – personal website