View source for Liz Clay

{{Short description|Australian hurdler (born 1995)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox sportsperson
| name = Liz Clay
| birth_name = Elizabeth Clay
| image = Liz Clay 02 (cropped).jpg
| caption = Liz Clay in the "Piero Ferrazzi" athletics track in Olgiate Olona in 2024.
| nationality = Australian
| sport = Athletics
| event = [[100m hurdles]]
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1995|05|09|df=yes}}
| birth_place =
| death_date =
| death_place =
| height = 172 cm
| weight = 64 kg
|  medaltemplates = {{Medal|Sport | Women's athletics}}
{{Medal|Country|{{flagu|AUS}}}}
{{Medal|Competition|[[Oceania Athletics Championships|Oceania Championships]]}}
{{Medal|Gold|[[2024 Oceania Athletics Championships|2024 Suva]]|[[2024 Oceania Athletics Championships#Women|100m hurdles]]}}
}}
'''Elizabeth (Liz) Clay''' (born 9 May 1995) is an Australian [[100m hurdles|100m hurdler]]. Her personal best of 12.71 at the [[Athletics at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Women's 100 metres hurdles|Tokyo Olympics]] makes her the third fastest in Australian history.<ref name=":0" />
== Career ==
=== Early years ===
She became interested in athletics after watching her younger brother Harry compete, and joined Hornsby Little Athletics as an under-10.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Elizabeth Clay|url=https://www.olympics.com.au/olympians/elizabeth-clay/|access-date=2021-09-22|website=Australian Olympic Committee|language=en-AU}}</ref>
She made her junior international debut at the 2014 World Juniors in the 100m hurdles, but had to withdraw from the team when she broke her navicular bone weeks before the team departed. Clay then completed an exercise and sports science degree in [[Sydney]] and relocated to the [[Gold Coast, Queensland|Gold Coast]] to work with Australian hurdles coach, Sharon Hannan, who had guided [[Sally Pearson]] to Olympic gold in 2012.<ref name=":0" />
=== Later career ===
Clay ran 12.94 to win at the 2020 [[Melbourne Track Classic]]. The following year, she opened her season with 12.84 in [[Brisbane]] and followed this with a 12.72 in [[Canberra]], both meeting the automatic qualifying standard for the [[2020 Tokyo Olympics]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=How Hannan moulded Clay into Australia’s next top sprint hurdler|url=https://www.worldathletics.org/news/feature/liz-clay-sprint-hurdles-australia-sharon-hannan|website=www.worldathletics.org}}</ref>
At the [[Athletics at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Women's 100 metres hurdles|Tokyo Olympics]] Clay ran 12.87 seconds to finish second in her heat and reach the semi-finals, where she ran a personal best of 12.71 for third,<ref>{{Cite web|title=Athletics - Round 1 - Heat 2 Results|url=https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/olympic-games/en/results/athletics/result-women-s-100m-hurdles-rnd1-000200-.htm|url-status=dead|access-date=2021-08-28|work=Tokyo 2020 Olympics|publisher=[[Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games]]|language=en-us|archive-date=31 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210731041601/https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/olympic-games/en/results/athletics/result-women-s-100m-hurdles-rnd1-000200-.htm}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Athletics - Semi-Final 2 Results|url=https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/olympic-games/en/results/athletics/result-women-s-100m-hurdles-sfnl-000200-.htm|url-status=dead|access-date=2021-08-28|work=Tokyo 2020 Olympics|publisher=[[Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games]]|language=en-us|archive-date=28 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210828224100/https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/olympic-games/en/results/athletics/result-women-s-100m-hurdles-sfnl-000200-.htm}}</ref> which was not fast enough to progress to the final.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Athletics - CLAY Liz|url=https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/olympic-games/en/results/athletics/athlete-profile-n1481456-clay-liz.htm|url-status=dead|access-date=2021-09-22|work=Tokyo 2020 Olympics|publisher=[[Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games]]|language=en-us|archive-date=22 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210922003319/https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/olympic-games/en/results/athletics/athlete-profile-n1481456-clay-liz.htm}}</ref>
==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clay, Elizabeth}}
[[Category:1995 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Australian female hurdlers]]
[[Category:Australian sports scientists]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Olympic athletes for Australia]]
[[Category:Place of birth missing (living people)]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2024 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:21st-century Australian sportswomen]]