Sympathetic overactivity (SO) is associated with obesity and cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality. Black adolescents have an increased risk of obesity and CVD later in life, particularly females. PURPOSE: To evaluate differences in SO between black (BOA) and white obese female adolescents (WOA). METHODS: Sixty-one BOA (n=49, 13.7±1.6 yrs, 38.1±6.1 kg/m2) and WOA (n=12, 13.3±2.2 yrs, 34.3±4.9 kg/m2) completed a maximal graded treadmill test after which an exercise recovery index (ERI; heart rate/VO2 plateau) was calculated. RESULTS: The ERI was significantly greater in BOA compared to WOA (29.8 ± 6.4 vs. 24.1 ± 3.1, P = 0.004). Multiple linear regression modeling revealed a significant independent association between ERI and VO2FFM (r = -0.310, P = 0.027) and %FAT (r = 0.326, P = 0.020) in BOA only. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that BOA females have greater SO than WOA females.