Zara Northover
Encyclopedia
Zara Northover is a Jamaica
n shot put
ter. Northover has dual citizenship in the United States
and Jamaica, and competed for Jamaica at the 2008 Summer Olympics
.
Northover attended Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts
, where she competed on the women's track and field team, and graduated in 2007 with a bachelor's degree in communications and a minor in political science. As a senior, Northover was named Colonial Athletic Association
Field Athlete of the Year after winning the shot put, discus and hammer and placing seventh in the javelin, helping lead Northeastern to their first CAA title in any sport. Her throw at the Eastern College Athletic Conference
Championship during the 2007 outdoor season set both Northeastern and ECAC records. Northover was a five-time NCAA Championship qualifier and had the best national finish of her career in her final season, placing 10th at the NCAA Championship
during the 2007 outdoor season, and was nominated for the NCAA Woman of the Year Award
.
Internationally, she finished fifth at the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games
. On June 8, 2008, Northover won the Island Games in Uniondale, New York
, with a throw of 17.56 meters, allowing her to compete in the Jamaican Olympic Trials in Kingston
, Jamaica
. She won the shot put at the Olympic Trials on June 28, 2008, with a throw of 16.78 meters. She was officially selected to represent Jamaica in Beijing by the Jamaica Amateur Athletic Association on July 8, 2008, becoming the first Northeastern women’s athlete to compete in a Summer Olympics.
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
n shot put
Shot put
The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" a heavy metal ball—the shot—as far as possible. It is common to use the term "shot put" to refer to both the shot itself and to the putting action....
ter. Northover has dual citizenship in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Jamaica, and competed for Jamaica at the 2008 Summer Olympics
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...
.
Northover attended Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, where she competed on the women's track and field team, and graduated in 2007 with a bachelor's degree in communications and a minor in political science. As a senior, Northover was named Colonial Athletic Association
Colonial Athletic Association
The Colonial Athletic Association is a NCAA Division I college athletic conference whose full-time members are located in East Coast states from Massachusetts to Georgia. Most of its members are public universities, with five in Virginia alone, and the conference is headquartered in Richmond,...
Field Athlete of the Year after winning the shot put, discus and hammer and placing seventh in the javelin, helping lead Northeastern to their first CAA title in any sport. Her throw at the Eastern College Athletic Conference
Eastern College Athletic Conference
The Eastern College Athletic Conference is a college athletic conference comprising schools that compete in 21 sports . It has 317 member institutions in NCAA Divisions I, II, and III, ranging in location from Maine to North Carolina and west to Illinois...
Championship during the 2007 outdoor season set both Northeastern and ECAC records. Northover was a five-time NCAA Championship qualifier and had the best national finish of her career in her final season, placing 10th at the NCAA Championship
NCAA Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championship
NCAA team champions for Women's Outdoor Track and Field-By school:-See also:*AIAW Intercollegiate Women's Outdoor Track and Field Champions*NCAA Women's Indoor Track and Field Championship*NCAA Men's Outdoor Track and Field Championship...
during the 2007 outdoor season, and was nominated for the NCAA Woman of the Year Award
NCAA Woman of the Year Award
The NCAA Woman of the Year Award was created to honor a senior female student-athlete who has distinguished herself throughout her collegiate career in the areas of academic achievement, athletics excellence, service and leadership. Each year, ten finalists are selected from a larger pool of...
.
Internationally, she finished fifth at the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games
Athletics at the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games
The athletics competition at the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games took place at the Estadio Pedro de Heredia in Cartagena, Colombia and lasted from July 25 to July 29. There were 23 events for men and 21 for women...
. On June 8, 2008, Northover won the Island Games in Uniondale, New York
Uniondale, New York
Uniondale is a hamlet as well as a suburb of New York City in Nassau County, New York, United States, on Long Island, in the Town of Hempstead. The population was 24,759 at the 2010 United States Census.-Geography:...
, with a throw of 17.56 meters, allowing her to compete in the Jamaican Olympic Trials in Kingston
Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...
, Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
. She won the shot put at the Olympic Trials on June 28, 2008, with a throw of 16.78 meters. She was officially selected to represent Jamaica in Beijing by the Jamaica Amateur Athletic Association on July 8, 2008, becoming the first Northeastern women’s athlete to compete in a Summer Olympics.
External links
- Official website
- Zara Northover at Northeastern University Track & Field
- Zara Northover at JamaicaAthletics.org
- Zara Northover at DirectAthletics, Inc.