Santia Deck (born November 19, 1991) is an American athlete. She started her career as a fitness trainer and gained a following on social media through her workouts and flag football skills.[1][2] Deck is the highest paid female American football player in the Women's Football League Association after signing a deal with a new team the Los Angeles Fames in 2020.[3]

Santia Deck
Personal information
NationalityAmerican
Born (1991-11-19) November 19, 1991 (age 32)
Greenville, South Carolina, U.S.
EducationBachelor of Arts in English and Literature
Alma materTexas A&M University–Kingsville
OccupationAthlete
Years active2019–present
Height5 ft 1 in (155 cm)
Weight135 lb (61 kg)
Websitewww.santiadeck.com
Sport
CountryUnited States
LeagueWomen's Football League Association

Early life and education

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Deck was born on November 19, 1991, in Greenville, South Carolina, and raised in Houston, Texas.[4][5] She won a full track and field scholarship to Texas A&M University-Kingsville[6] and graduated with a bachelor's degree in English and literature.

At the age of seven she signed up for a track program during the summer.[7][8]

Career

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In rugby union she played with the Atlanta Harlequins, Stars Rugby 7s and the Bay of Plenty Rugby Union in New Zealand.[9] She was asked to try out for the USA women's team in Rugby sevens at the Summer Olympics of 2020 but an injury occurred.[10]

She joined the Legends Football League (LFL) in 2017.

In December 2019 Deck became the first woman to enter into a professional full tackle football contract with a forthcoming all female league - the Women's Football League Association (WFLA).[11][12]

Deck is known online as the 'queen of abs' and hosts her own TV talk show Queen of Abs Fitness. She also appeared in Steve Austin's Broken Skull Ranch, and Blind Date.[13][5]

In July 2020, Deck founded a startup company called Tronus which sells sneakers.[14]

References

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  1. ^ Prakash, Anand (January 3, 2020). "Santia Deck Becomes The First Female Athlete To Crack A Multi-Millionaire Deal With WFLA". thegedsection.com. Retrieved 2020-11-04.[permanent dead link]
  2. ^ Deck, Santia (February 3, 2020). "Okiki Podcast Episode 16: Santia Deck". Okiki Consulting (Interview). Interviewed by Fiyin Obayan. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
  3. ^ Aidoo, Theodora (January 2, 2020). "Santia Deck becomes the highest-paid female football player in the U.S." Face2Face Africa. Retrieved 2020-11-04.
  4. ^ Kramer, Kelsey (2020-01-14). "Santia Deck: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know". Heavy.com. Retrieved 2020-11-04.
  5. ^ a b "Santia Deck Becomes the Highest Paid Multi-Million Dollar Player for the WFLA" (Press release). SHE Beverage Company. Issuewire. December 10, 2019. Retrieved 2020-11-04.
  6. ^ "Santia Deck". Awareness Ties. Retrieved 2020-11-04.
  7. ^ Kirpalani, Bela (September 7, 2020). "Women's Football League Association Star Santia Deck Doesn't Slow Down". Uproxx. Retrieved 2020-11-04.
  8. ^ Dancja, Ledion (July 11, 2020). "Santia Deck is the first women to sign a multi-million dollar football contract". Soultalknews. Retrieved 2020-11-04.[permanent dead link]
  9. ^ Manza Young, Shalise (March 9, 2020). "A mix of Flo-Jo and Barry Sanders, Santia Deck hoping to pave next generation of women's football". sports.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2020-11-04.
  10. ^ Weinberg, Chana (August 23, 2020). "Get to Know Santia Deck: Athlete, Entrepreneur, 'Queen of Abs'". The Garnette Report. Retrieved 2020-11-04.
  11. ^ Gaydos, Ryan (January 8, 2020). "Fitness guru Santia Deck makes history signing multimillion-dollar deal with football team". Fox News. Retrieved 2020-11-04.
  12. ^ Deck, Santia (July 3, 2020). "Santia Deck Makes History Again; First Woman Athlete To Own Sneaker Company" (Press release). TRONUS. PRLog. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
  13. ^ The Scorecrow (April 11, 2019). "Santia Deck: A World Class Athlete and Entrepreneur". Prime Time Sports Talk. Archived from the original on 2022-10-01. Retrieved 2020-11-04.
  14. ^ "Our Story". TRONUS. Retrieved 2020-11-11.