Marie-Jose Perec

Track and field

Marie-Jose Perec seems to be the woman without a country in the eyes of the French media corps at the Olympic Games, a refreshing and candid runner who just might steal a little of the spotlight from male counterpart Michael Johnson. They both won 400-meter gold medals Monday night, and they’re both striking out this morning with the same objective in mind.

Since Johnson is a native of Texas, a graduate of Baylor and one of the country’s most visible track athletes, there is all sorts of fanfare and publicity surrounding his bid for a historic 200/400 double. He’d be the first male to win both events in the Olympics. Since Perec is a native of the French territory of Guadeloupe, a member of the French Olympic team and a resident of Beverly Hills, where she trains, she has slipped onto the stage without a proper introduction.

Perec grew up on Guadeloupe, part of the West Indies, raised by her grandmother in an impoverished youth.

“I lived there until I was 14,” she said. “It was a nice part of my life.”

She moved to France after a French coach timed her in a 200 race in Guadeloupe and informed her she’d qualified for the French national championships. She has set French records in the 100, 200, 400 and 400 hurdles.