Melissa Jefferson-Wooden

Sports Career of Melissa Jefferson-Wooden | Melissa Jefferson-Wooden Biography

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden has swiftly risen to the top of the world rankings in the short sprints. She finished her 2025 season as the world champion in the 100-meter and 200-meter.

Jefferson-Wooden first started running the short sprints in 2016 at the age of 15, running 12.63 seconds in the 100-meter. By 2018, she dropped her personal best in the 100-meter to 12.23 seconds, into a -2.5m/s wind.

In her senior year, she won the state title in the 100-meter and finished second in the 200-meter. Her accomplishments earned her a scholarship to Coastal Carolina College in 2019. She continued to make big improvements throughout her college career. In 2021, she had a big breakthrough in the 100-meter, running 11.22 seconds and going on to make it to the semi-finals at the NCAA Championships.

Up until 2022, Jefferson-Wooden had established herself as one of the top sprinters in the United States, but in 2022, she started finding international success.

In March, she ran a personal best of 7.09 seconds in the final of the NCAA Division I Indoor Championships in Birmingham, Alabama. This time would capture her first over Abby Steiner by 0.01 seconds.

In the outdoor season, she dropped under eleven seconds for the first time when she ran 10.88 seconds at the Sun Belt Outdoor Championships, taking home gold. She ran under 11 seconds again in the semi-final of the NCAA Outdoor Championships, but didn’t find this form in the final, ending up eighth.

Less than two weeks after her disappointing finish at the NCAA Championships, Jefferson-Wooden ran 10.82 seconds in the semi-final of the USATF Championships and a wind-aided 10.69 seconds in the final, taking home gold and qualifying for the World Championships being held in Eugene, Oregon.

At the World Championships, she made it to the semi-final, running 10.92 seconds and narrowly missing the final. She also ran on the American 4 x 100-meter team that captured gold.

Jefferson-Wooden ended her season by competing at her first Diamond League meeting in Poland.

She came back to Europe the next summer, running at several Diamond League meets in Doha and London. She finished fifth at the USA Championships, missing out on a spot to compete in the individual events at the World Championships being held in Budapest, but she once again ran on the 4 x 100-meter team, helping the American team win their heat.

2024 Olympics and Beyond

Jefferson-Wooden ran several fast times through the early part of her 2024 season, including 10.94 seconds in April. She showed remarkable consistency through the rest of the year, running under 11 seconds in all three rounds of the Olympic Trials and the Olympics.

She ran a wind-legal personal best at the Olympic Trials, running 10.80 seconds and finishing second behind Sha’Carri Richardson. At the Olympics, she won her prelim and semi-final. Richardson remained the favorite going into the race, but got edged out by Julien Alfred. Jefferson-Wooden finished third, winning her first individual medal at a major championship. Less than a week later, she helped the American 4 x 100-meter team capture Olympic gold as well.

In 2025, Jefferson-Wooden ran a windy 10.75 seconds at Grand Slam Miami before moving on to run a legal 10.73 seconds at Grand Slam Philadelphia. This remained a world lead until she ran 10.65 seconds to win the USA Championships in August. At the Silesia Diamond League meeting, she almost matched this time, running 10.66 seconds.

After consistently proving herself as the best sprinter of 2025 all season, she capped her season by finishing with a personal best of 10.61 seconds and 21.68 seconds in the 100-meter and 200-meter respectively, becoming the world champion in both events.

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden Athlete Personal Life and Other Facts | Melissa Jefferson-Wooden 100m

Jefferson-Wooden is coached by Dennis Mitchell and currently competes for Nike. Her hometown is Georgetown, South Carolina, and she went to Coastal Carolina University.

Jefferson-Wooden got married on March 25, 2025, to her current husband Rolan Wooden II. Up until this point, she was competing under the last name “Jefferson.” Before she hyphenated her name, she shared the same name as singer “Lizzo,” whose birth name is Melissa Viviane Jefferson.

Jefferson-Wooden saved her father’s life when she was 17. Melvin Jefferson was diagnosed with a type of blood cancer called myelodysplastic syndrome. Melissa donated stem cells from her bone marrow to support his treatment. 

October 12^th has been named Melissa Jefferson Day in her hometown of Georgetown, which has a population of about 9.000 people.

FAQs | Melissa Jefferson-Wooden | Melissa Jefferson Track

How Many Medals Does Melissa Jefferson-Wooden Have? | Melissa Jefferson-Wooden Medals

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden won the Olympic bronze medal in the 100-meter dash in 2024. She was also a part of the American 4 x 100-meter relay team that won gold. She’s the three-time 4 x 100-meter World Champion and the 2025 100-meter and 200-meter World Champion.

What is Melissa Jefferson’s Height?

We couldn’t find a confirmed number, but she seems to be around 1.62 meters or about 5’4”.

How Old is Melissa Jefferson-Wooden?

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden is currently 25 years old.

Where is Melissa Jefferson from?

Jefferson-Wooden is from the small city of Georgetown, South Carolina.

What is Melissa Jefferson College?

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden attended Coastal Carolina University.

What is Melissa Jefferson High School?

Melissa Jefferson when to Carvers Bay High School in Georgetown, South Carolina.