Amber Anning

Anning was born in London, England and spent her early years in Hove and Australia. She attended Brighton Hove & Sussex Sixth Form College achieving three A's at A-Level.[1] In 2020, Anning began studying at Louisiana State University on a scholarship. In 2022 she transferred to the University of Arkansas. She graduated in 2024 with a degree in Advertising and Public Relations with minors in Journalism, Strategic Media and Psychology.[2]

Anning has competed for Brighton & Hove Athletic Club since she was nine years old.[3] From the age of 16, until his unexpected death in 2021, she was coached by Lloyd Cowan.[1][2] Anning broke the British under-15 300 metres record running 38.73 seconds and was the first, and to date, the only British under-15 to run sub 39 seconds. The previous record holder was Dina Asher-Smith.[2]

At the 2017 Commonwealth Youth Games, Amber finished third in the 400 metres event and was part of the England team that finished second in the mixed 4 × 400 metres relay. She missed the 2018 IAAF World U20 Championships due to injury.[4]

Aged 17, she won a bronze medal over 200m at the British Indoor Championships. A year later, at 18, she came second over 400m at the British Indoor Championships, running 53s dead to break the nearly 50-year-old British U20 Indoor record of Marilyn Neufville. With this she auto-qualified for the individual 400m and the British relay squad, which won the silver medal in the women's 4 × 400 metres relay at the 2019 European Athletics Indoor Championships.[2]

In the same year, Amber also finished second in the 400 metres event at the 2019 European Athletics U20 Championships, and anchored the British team to victory in the women's 4 × 400 metres relay competition at the championships.[2]

In 2020, she started competing in college athletics for LSU Tigers,[5] where she was coached by Dennis Shaver.[2] In August 2022, she transferred to Arkansas Razorbacks.[5] to work with Coach Chris Johnson.

Amber has received 12 All-America team honours and multiple Academic All-America honours.[1] At the 2023 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships, she was part of the Arkansas relay team that set the fastest women's indoor 4 × 400 metres relay time in history of 3:21.75. Anning's time on the first leg was the fifth fastest ever.[5]

Anning was a key member of the British team that finished third in the women's 4 × 400 metres relay event at the 2023 World Athletics Championships. It was her first senior World Championships, and she ran the second leg of the race splitting 49.70 seconds in the heat and 49.82 seconds in the final.[3]

In January 2024, Amber broke Katharine Merry's 25-year-old 200m British Indoor record, clocking 22.60 at Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA.[6]

On March 9th 2024, she won the 400m at the 2024 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships in Boston in 50.79 seconds, leading her teammates Nickisha Pryce and Rosey Effiong to an historic podium as Arkansas became the first women’s program to have a 1-2-3 finish in the 400 at the NCAA Indoor meet. The Arkansas Razorbacks, led for the first time by Head Coach, Chris 'Captain' Johnson, also won the Women's team title for the second year in a row.

On May 11th 2024, Anning ran 49.51 seconds over 400m at the SEC Championships, to move to third place on the British All-Time list. Only 2008 Olympic Champion Christine Ohuruogu and 1984 Olympic bronze medallist Kathy Smallwood have run faster.

On June 8th 2024, at the 2024 NCAA Division 1 Outdoor Track and Field Championships Amber won the bronze medal over 400m, running 49.59 seconds, in an historic race in which the Razorbacks achieved a 'super sweep' of the top four places.

The four athletes Anning, Effiong, Pryce and Kaylyn Brown then combined to set a collegiate record of 3:17.96 to win the 4x400m relay and clinch Arkansas the team title. It is the 10th fastest time ever run and would have won all but three Olympic finals.

• Amber Anning at World Athletics