Shani Marks made her Olympic debut in Beijing in 2008. As a senior at the University of Minnesota in 2004, marks qualified for the U.S. Trials in the triple jump, but just missed qualifying with a fourth-place mark of 13.54m/44-5 1/4. She made amends with a victory at the 2008 Trials.
Marks qualified for Beijing by finishing finished first at 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials in Eugene, with a personal-best jump of 14.34m/47-2¼. The clearance set a new Hayward Field record.
Marks earned her first national title at the 2005 U.S. Indoor Championships when she won the women's triple jump with her hop, skip and a jump of 13.65m/44-9.5. In 2006, Marks came through with a big personal best of 13.89m/45-7, beating American record holder Tiombe Hurd (13.86m/45-5.75) at the U.S. Outdoor Championships. In 2007, Marks returned to the winner's stand at the U.S. Indoor Championships, taking the competition with a best effort of 13.56m/44-6. She successfully defended her U.S. Outdoor Championship with a personal-best mark of 14.08m/26-2.5.
Like most Olympic hopefuls, Marks lives the largely solitary life of a serious athlete whose pursuit lies on the outer fringes of America's sporting existence. "I really didn't plan on things happening this way," Marks said. "My senior year, I got the mark [to qualify for] the 2004 Olympic trials, so I knew I'd train another year. Then when I got fourth at the trials, I wanted to keep training for 2008. It is definitely hard to do. It can be hard to come out here, to work hard every day, to motivate yourself. But overall, I love it.”
Marks didn't start out as a young girl competing in track. Instead she was a gymnast while growing up in Apple Valley, Minn. "When I was a little girl, I started out in gymnastics," Marks said. "But, I was a really fast runner. So when I was in high school, my mother encouraged me to participate in track." Marks was able to take what she learned as a gymnast to win the state long jump title as a senior with a leap of 19- feet, 1-inch.
Marks has had to make sacrifices on and off the track to succeed in her academic and personal pursuits. An Academic All-American and Big Ten Medal of Honor winner, Marks was graduated from Minnesota in 2002 and earned a master's degree in kinesiology with a perfect 4.0 grade point average. Her life on the track has required some sacrifice as well. In March 2007, Marks married former Minnesota Gophers football player Ron Johnson, a former NFL receiver who is playing arena football in Orlando. Marks tries to visit Johnson once a month during the six months he is out of town. In 2011 Shani become a mother to her first born baby girl Karma.