Jackie Joyner-Kersee

Jackie Joyner

Jackie Joyner-Kersee in 2014
Personal information
Nationality	American
Born	(1962-03-03) March 3, 1962 (age 54) East St. Louis, Illinois
Height	178 cm (5 ft 10 in)
Weight	66 kg (146 lb)
Sport
Country	United States
Sport	Athletics
Event(s)	Long jump, heptathlon
Club	Tiger World Class Athletic Club West Coast Athletic Club McDonald's Track Club
Medal record Representing the  United States Olympic Games 1988 Seoul Heptathlon 1988 Seoul Long jump 1992 Barcelona Heptathlon 1984 Los Angeles Heptathlon 1992 Barcelona Long jump 1996 Atlanta Long jump World Championships 1987 Rome Long jump 1987 Rome Heptathlon 1991 Tokyo Long jump 1993 Stuttgart Heptathlon Pan American Games 1987 Indianapolis Long jump

Jacqueline "Jackie" Joyner-Kersee (born March 3, 1962) is an American retired track and field athlete, ranked among the all-time greatest athletes in the heptathlon as well as long jump. She won three gold, one silver, and two bronze Olympic medals, in those two events at four different Olympic Games. Sports Illustrated for Women magazine voted Joyner-Kersee the Greatest Female Athlete of All-Time.

After retiring as a competitive athlete, Joyner-Kersee has been involved with many philanthropic efforts and has joined the Board of Directors for USA Track & Field (USATF), the national governing body of the sport.

Joyner-Kersee is one of the most famous athletes to have overcome severe asthma.

Jacqueline Joyner was born March 3, 1962, in East St. Louis, Illinois, and was named after Jackie Kennedy. As a high school athlete at East St. Louis Lincoln Senior High School, she qualified for the finals in the long jump at the 1980 Olympic Trials, finishing 8th behind another high schooler, Carol Lewis. She was inspired to compete in multi-disciplinary track & field events after seeing a 1975 made-for-TV movie about Babe Didrikson Zaharias. Interestingly, Didrikson, the trackster, basketball player, and pro golfer, was chosen the "Greatest Female Athlete of the First Half of the 20th Century. Fifteen years later, Sports Illustrated for Women magazine voted Joyner-Kersee the greatest female athlete of all time, just ahead of Zaharias.

Joyner-Kersee attended college at the University of California at Los Angeles, where she starred in both track & field and in women's basketball from 1980-1985. She was a starter in her forward position for each of her first three seasons (1980–81, 81-82, and 82-83) as well as in her senior (fifth) year, 1984-1985. She had red-shirted during the 1983-1984 academic year to concentrate on the heptathlon for the 1984 Summer Olympics.