37
Caribbean Life, April 7-13, 2022
By Nelson A. King
After recently winning the University
of Arkansas Invitational
Women 800 meters at the Randal
Tyson Track Center, Vincentian
Olympian Shafiqua Maloney has
been telling Caribbean Life of her
journey thus far.
Maloney, who was born on Feb.
27, 1999, hails from Richland Park
in the Marriaqua Valley in St. Vincent
and the Grenadines.
She first attended the Thomas
Saunders Secondary School
(TSSS) in St. Vincent and the
Grenadines, the first school in the
nation to participate in the illustrious
Penn Relays at the Franklin
Field Stadium at the University of
Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
Marloney said she then transferred
to the Verchilds High School
in St. Kitts and Nevis for the last
three years of high school.
Afterwards, she attended Southern
Illinois University Carbondale
and then transferred to the University
of Arkansas in 2018, where
she is now coached by Chris Johnson.
“Being on an athletic scholarship
has been a big blessing for
me,” she said. “I was able to pursue
a bachelor’s degree in Geography,
and now I am doing my master’s
in operations management.
“The University of Arkansas has
gone above and beyond to ensure
I have all the resources to be as
successful as I can be on and off
the track,” Maloney added. “Words
cannot begin to describe how
grateful and appreciative I am that
they gave me an athletic scholarship,
not just to be a better athlete
and person.”
She said winning the 800
meters at the SEC championships
was “very meaningful to me and
my coach.
“It was one of the goals we
had together and worked towards,”
Maloney said. “When I first got to
Arkansas, as competitive as the
SEC was and continues to be, I did
not think I had what it took to be
an SEC champion in anything.
“But I now, I know that anything
is possible once you work
hard and believe in yourself,” she
added.
In the 800m in the SEC Championship,
Maloney crossed the finish
line in 2:08.60 ahead of Isabel
Van Camp, also of Arkansas, in
2:13.75, and Je-Risa James of Ark-
Pine Bluff, in 2:22.77.
The local VINCENTIAN newspaper
said Maloney was also part of
the Arkansas triumphant 4X400m
relay team in a time of 3:34.79.
“The Vincentian lass ran the
third leg, and her team mates
were Paris Peoples (first leg), Morgan
Burks Magee (second leg)
and Rosey Effiong (final leg),” the
paper said.
It said Maloney’s efforts also
helped Arkansas to finish top in
the women’s team points standing
with a total of 228 points in the
16-event Meet.
Maloney was the Olympic flag
bearer in the Tokyo Olympics. She
Vincentian Olympian Shafiqua Maloney runs the Women’s 800m
race. University of Arkansas
is the national record holder in
the 800m for St. Vincent and the
Grenadines.
Visit this link to watch the
Women 800m Final | SEC Indoor
Track and Field Championships
2022: https://youtu.be/F9AKl0Qpv8Q
“The University of Arkansas has
come to be my home away from
home, and I could not have asked
for a better place to finish out
the rest of my collegiate career,”
Maloney told Caribbean Life.
Olympian Shafiqua Maloney’s
journey to University of Arkansas
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