Abby Steiner, Highest Paid Female Track Athlete Signed by Usain Bolt’s Sponsor, Wins Bermuda Grand Prix Gold

Making her presence known after overcoming injury and surgery, Abby Steiner, the 2022 USATF 200m champion, has truly highlighted her prowess at the Bermuda Grand Prix Gold 2024. Returning to the 200-meter event for the first time since the US trials last year, Abby Steiner delivered an outstanding performance, crossing the finish line with a time of 22.71 seconds to clinch victory. Commanding the race from start to finish, she outpaced her competitors, including Kynnedy Flannel and Ashanti Moore, who finished in 23.01 and 23.12 seconds, respectively.

Steiner has been making strides in her performances this year. Demonstrating her versatility, she showcased impressive times of 11.05 in the 100 meters and 51.58 in the 400 meters at the 2024 Tom Jones Memorial at Percy Beard Track in Gainesville, Florida earlier this month.

Notably, Abby Steiner holds the distinction of being one of the highest-paid female track athletes, boasting a lucrative sponsorship deal with Puma, valued at $2 million, the same brand that pays $10 million a year to Usain Bolt. Even in 2022, Abby declared, “I am very happy to be part of the PUMA family now and I can’t wait to take off.” Today, she embodies the brand’s values proudly, reflecting her significant worth. However, her journey to success was marked by notable setbacks.

How Abby Steiner overcame a career-threatening injury to dominate the track once again!

At 24, Steiner endured a six-month bout with a heel injury in 2023. Following her fourth-place finish in the 200m at the USA Track and Field Championships that year, she wisely opted to conclude her season to focus on her well-being. Undergoing surgery to remove a bone spur pressing against her Achilles tendon in her left heel, she took the necessary time for recovery. Now, a year later, the former University of Kentucky athlete is back on track, poised to resume her athletic pursuits. However, athletics wasn’t always her first career choice.

Abby Steiner, originally from Dublin, Ohio, began her athletic journey playing soccer in her youth. In eighth grade, she also began her journey in track and field. When she entered the University of Kentucky in 2018 on a dual-sport scholarship, Steiner initially divided her focus between soccer and track. However, after completing her freshman year, during which she competed in soccer games, Steiner made the choice to fully commit to track and field.

In a 2022 interview with the Lexington Herald-Leader, Steiner discussed her transition from soccer to track and field. She explained, “Before, with soccer, I’d be training soccer in the fall, then I would come to track. I think really allowing myself to dive fully into the process of the periodization of training that we do, so fall training and then going into indoor and outdoor, it’s all really important in developing speed and getting to where you want to be.” Undoubtedly, her performance at the Paris Olympics will be one to watch.