The Triple Jump is an event that is sometimes seen as obscure and out of place. Many question why 3 jumps as opposed to 4? Why are the hop and step done on the same foot as opposed to an alternate bounding motion? Why not just have the Long Jump as an event.
Though some may argue the event should have been removed, and World Athletics attempted to do so from the Diamond League, it has remained a mainstay in the sport and one of the premier events.
Though there are many American athletes who have dominated the event, Al Joyner stands out as arguably having rejuvenated the event for the United States after almost a century away from the top of the podium. At the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles California, Al Joyner won Triple Jump Gold, becoming the first African American to ever do so.
Originally from East St. Louis, Illinois, Al Joyner is the older brother to Jackie Joyner-Kersee, who would also go on to become an Olympic legend in Track & Field. They both also had two younger sisters who they grew up with in Illinois, along with their mother and father.
Joyner got involved in sports through the local community center and when he started participating in organized sports at Lincoln High School in East St. Louis, he became a star athlete. Though at the time, his parents were still working hard and just getting by to make enough to provide for the family.
Because of this, Joyner and his sister Jackie, who also got involved in sports as well, would work and train extremely hard, promising that one day they would make it big, achieve success in sports, and get out of the tough situation their family was in.
Joyner continued with his success and at just 20 years old, competed at the 1980 Olympic Trials, making it all the way to the quarter finals of the 110mH. Though he didn’t make the Olympic team, this would only be the start of what would come next in his Track and field career.
Joyner attended Arkansas state where he competed in the Triple Jump and had immense success. He was a 3-time NCAA Indoor All-American, 3-time NCAA Outdoor All-American and 4-time Southland Conference Champion in the 80’s.
Joyner went on to compete at the 1983 USA Championships where he finished 3rd place in the Triple Jump and qualified for the first ever World Championships in Athletics in Helsinki, Finland. At those world championships, Joyner finished 8th place in the final.
But just a year later, Joyner would have his golden moment.
At the 1984 Olympic Trials, Joyner finished 2nd place in the Triple Jump behind Mike Conley, qualifying to represent the United States at his first ever Olympic Games. This would be extra special as the Games would be held in Los Angeles, California, so right at home in the United States.
At those 1984 Olympics, Joyner won the Triple Jump Gold medal with a first round jump of 17.26m, finishing just ahead of fellow American Mike Colney who won silver in 17.18m.
This was a huge milestone for Joyner as he was now crowned the Olympic Champion at his first Olympic Games, but it also meant a lot for the United States as a whole. The last time a US athlete had won Olympic Gold in the Triple Jump was 1904, when Myer Prinstein led a 1-2-3 sweep of the medal podium. Now, exactly 80 years later, Joyner was standing at the top of the podium, leading a 1-2 finish for the United States, as the first Black American to win Olympic Gold in the Triple Jump.
After an 80 year drought, Joyner’s performance arguably sparked a resurgence in US Men’s Triple Jumping. Though the United States did not win a medal at the 1988 Olympics, Mike Conley and Charles Simpkins won Gold and Silver in 1992, while Kenny Harrison won Gold in 1996. Additionally, Christian Taylor and Will Clay won Gold and Silver at both the 2012 and 2016 Olympic Games.
So over the past 40 years, since Joyner Won Gold, the USA has 9 Olympic medals, 4 of which were Gold, compared to just 2 medals in the 80 years prior to Joyner, none of which were gold.
Joyner married the legendary Florence Griffith Joyner in 1987, who went on to win 3 Gold medals at the 1988 Olympics, as well as set two, still standing, world records in the 100m and 200m. Griffith Joyner unfortunately passed away in 1988.
Al Joyner left an unforgettable legacy in the sport of Track & Field, and in Triple Jumping specifically. His 1984 Olympic Gold returned the USA to the top of the podium in the event and inspired a generation of jumpers who continue to dominate to this day.
