The surface never mattered to former Hampton University track and field star Ce’Aira Brown. On concrete, pavement or grass, anybody could get left in her shadow if they made the mistake of blinking. 
 
Her tenure at Hampton allowed the young athlete to write her name with a golden pen to match her golden blonde low cut in the MEAC history books, while also being named to the MEAC’s all-time teams for women’s cross country, indoor track and field and outdoor track and field.
 
Three weeks ago, Brown got to bring her golden pen out again to further indent her legacy as a 2023 MEAC Hall of Fame inductee. 
 
Growing up, Brown’s mother was similar to any other mother. She would watch Brown from afar play and laugh with kids in the neighborhood. After Brown and her neighborhood friends transitioned from regular games to wanting to race, the laughter came to a halt.
 
But Brown always got the last laugh.
 
Her mother watched her pass everyone, race after race. This was a sign to her mother to get Brown on a real track. She began going to Willingboro Track Club in New Jersey. During her first year at the new club, Brown and her teammates competed in the 4x800-meter championships. 
 
“I don’t remember if we won or not, but I know we did good,” Brown said. “This was my first experience at a championship.”
 
This championship made Brown begin to long for the feeling of crossing the finish line first.
 
Allyson Felix and Florence “Flo-Jo” Griffith Joyner come to mind when stellar track and field performances are imagined. For Brown, local New Jersey runner English Gardner filled her dreams.
 
“(Gardner) was really doing her thing and winning all the time,” Brown said. “She was really fast and all the girls in my track club really looked up to her. I really only looked up to people in my community and in my track club. I didn’t really focus on the older popular people like that because I got to see a real star in-person. I always felt English Gardner was a star in my eyes.”
 
Gardner went on to run track at the University of Oregon, be a professional sprinter for Nike, win two Olympic medals, win the U.S. 100-meter twice and become a NCAA indoor and outdoor champion. 
 
On the other side of the country, Brown began to have her own success. Still building on the momentum of her first taste to compete in a championship back at Willingboro, at her first collegiate stop at Langston University, Brown was an All-American in the 4x400-meter relay. 
 
“Hampton was the only school to take a chance on me after Langston,” Brown said.
 
Once the long-distance runner embraced her Home by the Sea, if there was a title in the MEAC up for grabs, Brown did anything to make sure it would end up in the palm of her hand. 
 
“Because she is an all-around athlete, it does not matter what the task is, she is going to compete,” Hampton 0assistant cross country and track coach Krystle Hemby said. “When you have somebody on your team who is just a great athlete, it makes you want to push hard.”
 
During the 2013 cross country season, Brown was named to the All-MEAC team. For the 2013-14 indoor season Brown brought home First Team All-MEAC honors in the 800-meter run, 4x400-meter relay and distance medley. To sweep the boards, Brown was named the MEAC Indoor Championship Most Outstanding Runner.
 
“When you win, it’s so much adrenaline running through your body mixed with excitement,” Brown said. “You want to keep doing it. I kept feeling good and of course, I was humble. It makes you keep wanting to go after it and keep getting wins under your belt.”
 
After Brown’s first year as a Pirate, she proved she was not an overhyped one-hit wonder. The rest of her time wearing royal blue and crisp white consisted of winning MEAC Outstanding Runner four more times and earning All-MEAC cross country honors two more times.
 
Hemby and Brown share a special bond because Hemby was experiencing her first year as a collegiate coach during Brown’s time as a Pirate. The running duo was able to experience trial-and-error together, ultimately turning it into triumph. 
 
“Seeing Ce’Aira begin to win was amazing,” Hemby said. “I was able to add to the talent she already had. She trusted me and she trusted everything I would tell her. She trusted the training and the conversations from someone that did not know her and put all the pieces of the puzzle together by herself.”
 
Brown also firmly holds the second-fastest time in MEAC history in the indoor 800 meters and mile run. She left Hampton, Va., as one of the most decorated Pirates after winning seven MEAC events and being a part of the top 25 times in a MEAC cross country championship ever. 
 
“Yes, of course, she ran fast and broke a lot of records but I think it’s her determination to never give up and being open to trying new things that were outside of her comfort zone that makes her great,” Hemby said. “Sometimes, we put ourselves in a box and Ce’Aira is not like that.”
 
Brown’s winning ways are fueled by pasta. The night before every race since she is a long-distance runner, she believes she needs to have plenty of electrolytes and food on her stomach. She combines her award-winning pasta with a mix of stretching, meditation and music to hit the track at her full potential. 
 
After graduating from Hampton, Brown decided to run for New Jersey-New York Track Club operated by award-winning coach Frank Gagliano as a professional.
 
No matter where in the world her abilities took her, the Hampton all-star has always shown up and vividly known who she is.
 
“You can ask anybody, I did what I wanted,” Brown said. “I always express myself through my hair and nails. I would try different colors in my hair and nails. I even grew my hair out just to put silver locks in my hair. I always stood out on the track. I will always express myself as an individual.”
 
Despite being judged for her team’s appearance, the Pirates let their times speak up for them.
 
“I always felt like big Division I schools looked down on us,” Brown said. “It looked like they said to themselves, ‘It’s just a small HBCU, they don’t have any talent.’ So, we just had to show them. I feel like we were always having to prove something. But once we proved it, we got the respect.”
 
Outside of dominating on every surface, below the surface, Brown enjoys all things fashion, especially styling. Now, she spends her retirement from the sport attending school to become a licensed barber.