View source for Novlene Williams-Mills

{{Short description|Jamaican sprinter (born 1982)}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2022}}
{{Infobox sportsperson
| headercolor    =
| name           = Novlene Williams-Mills
| image          = Novlene Williams-Mills 2015.jpg
| imagesize      =
| caption        = Williams-Mills in 2015
| birth_date     = {{Birth date and age|1982|4|26|df=y}}
| birth_place    = [[Saint Ann Parish, Jamaica|Saint Ann Parish]], Jamaica
| height         = 5 ft 6 in
| weight         = 121 lb
| country        = {{JAM}}
| sport          = [[Track and field]]
| event          = [[400 metres]]
| collegeteam    = [[Florida Gators track and field|University of Florida]]
| club           = Adidas, Herzogenaurach (GER)
| pb             =
| show-medals    = yes
| medaltemplates =
{{MedalCompetition|[[Olympic Games]]}}
{{MedalSilver|[[2008 Summer Olympics|2008 Beijing]]|[[Athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Women's 4 × 400 metres relay|4 × 400 m relay]]}}
{{MedalSilver|[[2012 Summer Olympics|2012 London]]|[[Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Women's 4 × 400 metres relay|4 × 400 m relay]]}}
{{MedalSilver|[[2016 Summer Olympics|2016 Rio de Janeiro]]|[[Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics – Women's 4 × 400 metres relay|4 × 400 m relay]]}}
{{MedalBronze|[[2004 Summer Olympics|2004 Athens]]|[[Athletics at the 2004 Summer Olympics – Women's 4 × 400 metres relay|4 × 400 m relay]]}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[IAAF World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]]}}
{{MedalGold|[[2015 World Championships in Athletics|2015 Beijing]]|[[2015 World Championships in Athletics – Women's 4 × 400 metres relay|4 × 400 m relay]]}}
{{MedalSilver|[[2005 World Championships in Athletics|2005 Helsinki]]|4 × 400 m relay}}
{{MedalSilver|[[2007 World Championships in Athletics|2007 Osaka]]|4 × 400 m relay}}
{{MedalSilver|[[2009 World Championships in Athletics|2009 Berlin]]|[[2009 World Championships in Athletics – Women's 4 × 400 metres relay|4 × 400 m relay]]}}
{{MedalSilver|[[2011 World Championships in Athletics|2011 Daegu]]|[[2011 World Championships in Athletics – Women's 4 × 400 metres relay|4 × 400 m relay]]}}
{{MedalBronze|2007 Osaka|400 m}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[IAAF World Relays|World Relays]]}}
{{Medal|Silver|[[2014 IAAF World Relays|2014 Nassau]]|[[2014 IAAF World Relays – Women's 4 × 400 metres relay|4 × 400 m relay]]}}
{{Medal|Silver|2015 Nassau|[[2015 IAAF World Relays – Women's 4 × 400 metres relay|4 × 400 m relay]]}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[Commonwealth Games]]}}
{{MedalGold|[[2014 Commonwealth Games|2014 Glasgow]]|[[Athletics at the 2014 Commonwealth Games – Women's 4 × 400 metres relay|4 × 400 m relay]]}}
{{MedalSilver|2014 Glasgow|[[Athletics at the 2014 Commonwealth Games – Women's 400 metres|400 m]]}}
{{MedalBronze|[[2006 Commonwealth Games|2006 Melbourne]]|[[Athletics at the 2006 Commonwealth Games - Women's 400 metres|400 m]]}}
{{Medal|Country|[[File:Americas (orthographic projection).svg|20px]] [[Americas]]}}
{{Medal|Competition|[[IAAF Continental Cup|Continental Cup]]}}
{{Medal|Gold|[[2014 IAAF Continental Cup|2014 Marrakech]]|4 × 400 m relay}}
{{Medal|Silver|[[2014 IAAF Continental Cup|2014 Marrakech]]|400 m}}
}}

'''Novlene Hilaire Williams-Mills''' (''[[maiden name|née]]'', '''Williams'''; born 26 April 1982) is a retired Jamaican [[track and field]] athlete. She won the bronze medal in the 400 metres at the [[2007 World Championships in Athletics|2007 World Championships]]. She is also a three-time Olympic silver medallist in the 4 × 400 metres relay.<ref name=sr/> In 2015 she won relay gold alongside her Jamaican teammates.

== Early life ==
Williams-Mills was born in [[Saint Ann, Jamaica|Saint Ann]], Jamaica. She is a graduate of Ferncourt High School, located in [[Claremont, Jamaica|Claremont]], St. Ann Parish, Jamaica. She attended the [[University of Florida]] in [[Gainesville, Florida|Gainesville]], Florida, where she was a member of coach Tom Jones' [[Florida Gators track and field]] team. She graduated from the university with a bachelor's degree in 2004.

In March 2020, Williams-Mills announced that she was pregnant with Twins.

==Athletics career==
At the [[2005 World Championships in Athletics]], she won (together with [[Shericka Williams]], [[Ronetta Smith]] and [[Lorraine Fenton]]) a [[silver medal]]. At the [[2006 Commonwealth Games]] in [[Melbourne]], Australia, she received a bronze medal for her third-place finish in the [[400 metres]].

At the [[2012 Olympic games]], Williams-Mills won a silver medal in the 4 × 400 meter relay. She also placed 5th in the individual 400 m event.<ref name="sr">{{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/wi/novlene-williams-mills-1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200417173515/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/wi/novlene-williams-mills-1.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2020-04-17 |title=Novlene Williams-Mills}}</ref>

Williams-Mills missed most of the 2013 season due to undergoing treatment for breast cancer.

During the 2014 season, Williams-Mills was very successful. Early in the season, she and three other Jamaican women won a silver medal in the 4 × 400 m relay at the [[2014 world relays]]. Williams-Mills competed at the [[2014 Commonwealth Games]] in [[Glasgow]] and won a silver medal in the individual 400 m and a gold in the 4 × 400 m relay, setting a games record in the latter. She was also successful at [[IAAF Diamond League|Diamond League]] meets, where she was crowned the [[2014 IAAF Diamond League|2014 Diamond League]] champion in the 400 m.

In 2015, Williams-Mills again won a silver medal at the world relays as part of the Jamaican 4 × 400 m team. At the [[2015 World Championships in Athletics]] in [[Beijing]], Williams-Mills finished sixth in the 400 m final involving four Jamaican women. In the relay, along with [[Christine Day]], [[Shericka Jackson]] and [[Stephenie Ann McPherson]], the individual 4th, 3rd and 5th placers, respectively, the Jamaican team won gold in front of the American favorites by just outsprinting them in the last 50 metres.

In 2016, Williams-Mills only competed in the relay at the [[2016 Olympic games]], running as the anchor leg for Jamaica trying to pass Allyson Felix of the US, but during the final stretch Allyson manage to hold off Novelene to get gold for the US and Jamaica got silver.

In 2017, Williams-Mills won the 400 m at the Jamaica invitational, winning in a time of 50.56. Later on in the season, she also won the 400 m at the [[IAAF Diamond League|Diamond League]] meeting in Paris in a time of 51.03.

At the [[London 2017]] World Championships, Williams-Mills made the final of the women's 400 m and came in eighth place in a time of 51.49. In the 4 × 400 m relay, which was going to be her last major championship race, she was scheduled to anchor the Jamaican team; however, on the second leg, [[Anneisha McLaughlin-Wilby]] pulled up injured, therefore ending the Jamaican team's chances of medalling in that event.

During the 2017 season, Williams-Mills announced that she would retire at the end of the 2017 season “ This is my farewell season; I’ve been in this for a long time and I think I’ve done my fair share and represented my country well so sometimes you have to hang up your spikes and move on the next chapter of your life and I think I’ve reached that point where I need to do that now", said Williams-Mills.

Her last race was on 1 September 2017 at the Brussels Diamond League, where she came 6th place running 51.27.

==Cancer diagnosis==
In July 2013, Williams-Mills told members of the media that she was diagnosed with breast cancer before the 2012 Olympics. Very few people at the time knew about the diagnosis. Despite the diagnosis, she still ran the race and was able to help Jamaica win a bronze medal. After the Olympics, Williams-Mills had a [[mastectomy]] and in January 2013, had another operation. She has stated that she would run, "for all the breast cancer survivors out there."

==See also==
{{Portal|Biography|Olympics}}
* [[Florida Gators]]
* [[List of Olympic medalists in athletics (women)]]
* [[List of University of Florida alumni]]
* [[List of University of Florida Olympians]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* {{World Athletics}}
* {{Olympedia}}
* {{Olympics.com|novlene-williams-mills}}

{{Footer World Champions 4 x 400 m Women}}
{{Footer Commonwealth Champions 4x400 m Women}}
{{Footer IAAF World Cup Champions 4x400 m Women}}
{{Footer IAAF Diamond League 400 Metres Champions Women}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Novlene}}
[[Category:1982 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Jamaican women sprinters]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2003 Pan American Games]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2006 Commonwealth Games]]
[[Category:Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for Jamaica]]
[[Category:Florida Gators women's track and field athletes]]
[[Category:World Athletics Championships medalists]]
[[Category:Olympic athletes for Jamaica]]
[[Category:Olympic bronze medalists for Jamaica]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Saint Ann Parish]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2014 Commonwealth Games]]
[[Category:World Athletics Championships athletes for Jamaica]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Jamaica]]
[[Category:Commonwealth Games athletes for Jamaica]]
[[Category:Olympic bronze medalists in athletics]]
[[Category:Olympic silver medalists for Jamaica]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Olympic silver medalists in athletics]]
[[Category:Diamond League winners]]
[[Category:IAAF Continental Cup winners]]
[[Category:World Athletics Championships winners]]
[[Category:Pan American Games silver medalists in athletics (track and field)]]
[[Category:Pan American Games silver medalists for Jamaica]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 2003 Pan American Games]]
[[Category:Olympic women sprinters]]
[[Category:Medallists at the 2014 Commonwealth Games]]
[[Category:Jamaican Athletics Championships winners]]
[[Category:Commonwealth Games gold medallists in athletics]]
[[Category:Commonwealth Games bronze medallists in athletics]]
[[Category:Jamaican expatriate sportspeople in the United States]]
[[Category:Jamaican expatriate sportspeople in Germany]]