Marlena Wesh

Marlena Wesh
Personal information
Full nameMarlena Hilari Wesh
Born (1991-02-16) February 16, 1991 (age 33)
Virginia Beach, Virginia, United States
Height5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)
Weight140 lb (63.50 kg)
Sport
CountryHaiti Haiti and United States United States of America
SportRunning
Event(s)200 m, 400 m
Updated on 29 December 2014

Marlena Hilari Wesh (born February 16, 1991) is a Haitian-American sprinter who competed in the 2012 Summer Olympics for Haiti in the women's 200-meter and 400-meter sprints. She appeared on the twenty-sixth season of The Bachelor.

Early life

Wesh was born on February 16, 1991, in Virginia Beach, Virginia.[1] Both of her parents, Hernould and Margareth Wesh, were born and raised in Haiti and she is a dual citizen.[1][2] She is one of five siblings, including fellow sprinter Darrell Wesh, and the only one to consider herself Haitian-American.[3] She attended Landstown High School in Virginia Beach, where she was a track star, being named as the 2008-09 Gatorade Virginia Girls Track and Field Athlete of the Year and The Virginian-Pilot's 2009 Female Athlete of the Year.[4] After graduating in 2009, she enrolled at the University of Oklahoma, where she was given a full scholarship, but she transferred and enrolled at Clemson University in South Carolina, where she majored in psychology.[1][2]

Athletic career

Wesh was approached by Haitian Olympic hurdler Nadine Faustin-Parker, who encouraged her to run for Haiti. She first competed at the Central American and Caribbean Championships in Puerto Rico in July 2011, coming in 8th place in the 400m and 13th place in the 200m.[3] She won the 400-meter sprint for Clemson in April 2012 at the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) outdoor championships with a time of 51.43 seconds, which was a meet record and her 4th consecutive 400-meter ACC championship.[2][3] It is a current American college record and 17th best in the world.[5] This time made her eligible to compete in the Olympics for both Haiti and America.[3]

She earned All-American designation in March 2012 in a Division I championship at Boise State University in Idaho.[6] In early July 2012, just prior to the 2012 London Olympics, Wesh ran her personal best in the 400-meters with a time of 51.23, just 0.03 seconds behind the first-place finisher, at the 2012 North America, Central America and Caribbean Under-23 Championships in Mexico.[3][7]

Four of the five athletes representing Haiti at the 2012 Olympics were not from Haiti.[8] Wesh's brother Daren could also have run for Haiti in the 2012 Olympics but chose to try to make the American team.[3] Wesh said, "I still feel Haitian even if I wasn't born there".[8] On August 3, she achieved her goal of making it to the 400-meter semi-finals in the 2012 London Olympics, having come in third in her heat.[3][9] On August 4, she failed to make it to the finals, placing 8th in her heat and 19th overall, with a time of 52.49.[10]

Later career

Wesh appeared on the twenty-sixth season of The Bachelor, competing to date Clayton Echard.[11] She was eliminated on week 5.[12] She works as a real estate agent in Miami, Florida, although she previously worked in corporate human resources.[13]

Personal bests

Event Result Venue Date
Outdoor
100 m 11.70 s (wind: +0.7 m/s) United States Coral Gables, Florida 19 Mar 2011
200 m 23.06 s (wind: -0.3 m/s) United States Charlottesville, Virginia 21 Apr 2012
400 m 51.23 s A, NR Mexico Irapuato 7 Jul 2012
400 m hurdles 57.49 s United States Austin, Texas 7 Apr 2011

Achievements

Year Competition Venue Position Event Notes
Representing  Haiti
2011 Central American and Caribbean Championships Mayagüez, Puerto Rico 13th (h) 200 m 24.08 (wind: -0.1 m/s)
8th 400 m 54.49
2012 NACAC Under-23 Championships Irapuato, México 2nd 400 m 51.23 A
Olympic Games London, United Kingdom 8th (sf) 400 m 52.49
2014 Central American and Caribbean Games Xalapa, México 8th (h) 100m 12.80 A (wind: -0.4 m/s)

References

  1. ^ a b c "Marlena Wesh". London 2012 Olympics. Archived from the original on July 22, 2012. Retrieved July 25, 2012.
  2. ^ a b c "Clemson Track & Field" (PDF). CBS Sports. June 9, 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved July 25, 2012.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Rubama, Larry (July 15, 2012). "Olympics Former Landstown track star runs for Haiti". The Virginian-Pilot. Archived from the original on July 16, 2012. Retrieved July 25, 2012.
  4. ^ Rubama, Larry (January 1, 2022). "Rubama: I'm not a fan of reality TV, but I'll be watching former Landstown track star Marlena Wesh on The Bachelor". The Virginian-Pilot. Archived from the original on January 20, 2022. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  5. ^ Rubama, Larry (May 21, 2012). "Ex-Landstown sprinter Wesh going to Olympics". The Virginian-Pilot. Retrieved July 25, 2012.
  6. ^ Rubama, Larry (March 12, 2012). "Local track athletes do well at national meets". The Virginian-Pilot. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved July 25, 2012.
  7. ^ Rubama, Larry (July 9, 2012). "Local runners do well at NACAC track meet". The Virginian-Pilot. Archived from the original on July 18, 2012. Retrieved July 25, 2012.
  8. ^ a b Daniel, Trenton (July 22, 2012). "Haiti's Olympic team in London isn't very Haitian". WALB News. Associated Press. Retrieved July 25, 2012.[permanent dead link‍]
  9. ^ "Haiti's Marlena Wesh Advances to Semi-Finals in Olympic 400m Competition". Defend Haiti. August 3, 2012. Archived from the original on August 7, 2012. Retrieved August 4, 2012.
  10. ^ Rubama, Larry (August 4, 2012). "Wesh doesn't advance to finals of Olympic 400 meters". The Virginian-Pilot. Retrieved August 4, 2012.
  11. ^ "'Bachelor' cast revealed: Meet the 31 contestants vying for Clayton Echard's heart". WLS-TV. December 15, 2021. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
  12. ^ Bonner, Mehera (January 25, 2022). "Meet Marlena Wesh, the Literal Olympian Competing on Clayton's 'Bachelor' Szn". Cosmopolitan. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  13. ^ Witter, Brad (February 14, 2022). "Marlena From 'The Bachelor' Really Wants To Be On 'BiP' — But Not To Date". Bustle. Retrieved March 3, 2023.