Melanie Neef (born 26 May 1970) is a British former track and field sprinter who specialised in the 400 metres. She represented her country at the 1995 World Championships in Athletics and 1995 IAAF World Indoor Championships. She set her lifetime best of 51.18 seconds at the outdoor event.[1][2]

Melanie Neef
Medal record
Women's athletics
Representing  Great Britain
IAAF World Cup
Gold medal – first place 1994 London 4 × 400 m relay
Summer Universiade
Silver medal – second place 1991 Sheffield 4 × 100 m relay

Born in Scotland to German footballer Gerhardt Neef, who was playing for Rangers F.C.,[3] she became involved in athletics with the City of Glasgow club.[4] Her first international medal came at the 1991 Summer Universiade where she was runner-up with the British women's 4 × 100 metres relay team.[5] She won senior gold medals with the 4 × 400 metres relay team at the 1994 European Cup and 1994 IAAF World Cup, as well as a fourth place at the 1994 European Athletics Championships.[4]

Neef took an individual silver medal at the 1994 European Cup behind Russia's Svetlana Goncharenko and returned the following year to win gold.[6] She was a finalist individually at the 1994 European Championships and came sixth for Scotland at the 1994 Commonwealth Games. Her last individual international outing was at the 1995 World Championships in Athletics, where she was fourth in her semi-final.[1]

She was a four-time national champion during her brief career, taking 400 m title outdoors at the AAA Championships in 1994 and 1995, and the national indoor title at the AAA Indoor Championships in 1995 and 1996.[7][8]

International competitions

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Year Competition Venue Position Event Notes
1991 Universiade Sheffield, United Kingdom 10th (sf) 100 m 11.88
9th (sf) 200 m 24.14
2nd 4 × 100 m relay 44.97
1993 Universiade Buffalo, United States 26th (h) 100 m 12.39
16th (sf) 200 m 24.00
4 × 100 m relay DNF
1994 European Cup Birmingham, United Kingdom 2nd 400 m 52.43
1st 4 × 400 m relay 3:27.33
Commonwealth Games Victoria, Canada 6th 400 m 52.09
European Championships Helsinki, Finland 6th 400 m 52.10
4th 4 × 400 m relay 3:24.14
World Cup London, United Kingdom 1st 4 × 400 m relay 3:27.36
1995 World Indoor Championships Barcelona, Spain 4th (h) 400 m 53.34
4th 4 × 400 m relay 3:35.39
European Cup Villeneuve d'Ascq, France 1st 400 m 51.35
World Championships Gothenburg, Sweden 4th (semis) 400 m 51.18
5th 4 × 400 m relay 3:26.89

National titles

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References

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  1. ^ a b Melanie Neef. IAAF. Retrieved on 2017-02-18.
  2. ^ Melanie Neef. All-Athletics. Retrieved on 2017-02-18.
  3. ^ Angus Wright (25 February 2010). "Old Firm in silent tribute for Rangers keeper Gerry Neef". The Scotsman. Retrieved 25 February 2010.
  4. ^ a b Melanie Neef. Power of 10. Retrieved on 2017-02-18.
  5. ^ World Student Games (Universiade. GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2017-02-18.
  6. ^ European Cup (Women). GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2017-02-18.
  7. ^ AAA Indoor Championships (Women). GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2017-02-18.
  8. ^ AAA Championships (Women). GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2017-02-18.
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