Carla Battaglia-Greene

Carla Battaglia-Greene (born 1963), is a native of Dayton, Ohio. As a stellar multi-sport athlete for Centerville High School, Carla Battaglia earned coveted All-State recognition in basketball, volleyball, and track and field. It was in the sport of track and field that Battaglia would gain national recognition.

During the 1980 Ohio High School Championships in Columbus, Battaglia won the long jump event and ran on the first place 1600 meter relay; she also competed in the high jump and 100 meter hurdles. In 1981, Carla returned to the state finals in four events; her valuable point production led the Centerville Elks to the team championship.

Upon graduating from Centerville, Battaglia attended Indiana University on a track and field scholarship. At Indiana, under the tutelage of Sam Bell and Carol Stevenson, Carla Battaglia blossomed into one of the finest all-around track and field athletes in the United States.Battaglia would eventually qualify for the National Collegiate Athletic Association Championships and the USA Track and Field Championships in the multi-event heptathlon competition, and the javelin throw.

In 1984, Battaglia was named "Athlete of the Meet" for her electrifying performance at the Big Ten Conference Track and Field Championships; that same year, Carla would also earn recognition as a finalist for Big-Ten Athlete of the Year honors. Not only had Carla Battaglia won conference titles in the heptathlon and the javelin - she had established Big Ten records in both events. For good measure, Battaglia also placed fourth in the triple jump; amassing twenty-six team points for the Hoosiers. Ironically, Carla's winning distance (54.50 m) in the javelin was superior to the qualifying standard for the United States Olympic Committee Track and Field Team Trials; the Big Ten event judge ruled the javelin had landed flat, thus nullifying the mark for USOC consideration. So prodigious was Battaglia's 1984 mark in the javelin, it remained on the books as the conference championship record until 2002.

In June 1984, Carla represented Indiana University at the NCAA Championships; by virtue of her seventh place performance in the heptathlon, Battaglia was named to the All-American Track and Field Team. The following year, Carla threw 53.60 meters in the javelin to claim a sixth place medal at the 1985 USA Track and Field Championships. Carla Battaglia also competed in the heptathlon (1983) and javelin (1985, 1987) at the USOC National Sports Festival.

On Labor Day 2005 (in Cedarville, Ohio) Battaglia threw the javelin 42.05 meters to establish a United States record for the 40-44 age group; thus serving notice to the track and field world that she is still a force to be reckoned with.The following year, as fitting tribute to her unwavering athletic prowess, Carla Battaglia-Greene was enshrined within the Centerville High School Athletic Hall of Fame.

References

* [http://bigten.cstv.com/auto_pdf/p_hotos/s_chools/big10/genrel/auto_pdf/0708records-women-track Big Ten Championship Record Book]
* [http://web1.ncaa.org/ncaa/eventlist.do?championship=800003&athlete=800431&division=800003800003 1984 NCAA Finals]
* [http://www.usatf.org/statistics/records/masters_outdoorTF.asp Masters Track and Field Rankings/Records]