Without a doubt, Plains native Georganne Moline had incredible athletic success in 2012. Racing collegiately over the 400 Meter Hurdles for the University of Arizona, Moline (the daughter of Jesse Steward of Plains) was undefeated until she had the misfortune to fall over a hurdle at the NCAA Championships. Then, she began an underdog run at the US Olympic Trials, where she continued to drop her personal best time, placing second at the trials and securing her way to the London Olympic Games. There, her hot streak continued as she ultimately finished fifth in the Olympics - track and fields’ greatest stage.

Recently, Track and Field News came out with their 66th Annual World Rankings. The magazine, which is proclaimed as the “bible of the sport”, ranks the athletes in each and every one of the events (sprints, hurdles, jumps, throws, distances and relays). For many years these rankings have been considered the definitive word on identifying who is the best of the best in the sport. And, what were the rankings for the women’s 400M Hurdles - how about this...Moline ranks second in the United States and seventh (that’s right seventh) in the world! On top of that, she had the eighth fastest time in the word at 53.92 seconds. Imagine that, running one lap around a high school track in just under 54 seconds and having to jump over 10 30” hurdles in the process - impressive indeed.

With those performances and a top 10 world ranking, it would be expected that Moline should have the opportunity to compete as a sponsored professional in the upcoming 2013 season. And with the World Championships set to take place in Moscow in August, she’ll have plenty of opportunity to race against the best women on the planet. Congratulations to Georganne and best of luck in 2013!