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Jackie Joyner-Kersee
- Six-time Olympic medalist (three gold, one silver, two bronze)
- Set a world record in the heptathlon in 1988 that still stands today with 7291 points
- Won the gold medal in the heptathlon in 1988 and 1992, and took home the gold in the long jump in '88 as well
- Silver medalist in the heptathlon at the 1984 Games
- Won the bronze in 1992 and 1996 in the long jump
- Kersee was inspired to compete in multiple sports and events after seeing a 1975 television movie about "Babe" Didrikson
- Won four consecutive National Junior Pentathlon Championships, the first at the age of 14, and also played volleyball in high school
- Excelled in basketball and accepted a basketball scholarship to UCLA, where she earned All-America honors as a four-year starter at forward
- Kersee briefly flirted with a professional basketball career after retiring from Olympic compeition, playing for the Richmond Rage of the American Basketball League
- Married her coach, Bob Kersee - whom she met in 1980 and also played for at UCLA - in 1986, the same year she gave up basketball for the heptathlon
- Comes from a family of talented athletes - her father, Alfred, was a hurdler and football player in high school, and her brother Al was also an Olympic athlete; Al's wife was Olympic sprinter Florence Griffith Joyner
- Kersee has received many awards, including the 1985 Broderick Cup as outstanding collegiate woman athlete, the James E. Sullivan Award in 1986 and the Jesse Owens Award in 1986 and '87; she was named Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year in 1987, an
- She took home the gold medal in the heptathlon at the 1998 Goodwill Games in what was to be her last competition; she retired soon thereafter
- Devotes her time now to many business ventures and to the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Youth Center Foundation
- Has fought asthma her entire life
- Widely considered the greatest all-around female athlete of the 20th century
At the 1996 Atlanta Games, in what would be Kersee's final Olympics, she left all those in attendance and watching at home with one final lasting memory. While an aging body and a badly injured hamstring forced Kersee to withdraw from the heptathlon, she decided to grind it out in the long jump. Through the obvious pain, Kersee landed one of the longest jumps of the night, and took home the bronze medal - her sixth and last career Olympic medal.
About her tireless work with the Youth Center Foundation, Kersee says, "Once I leave this earth, I know I've done something that will continue to help others."
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Height: 5'10
Born: 3/3/1962
Hometown: East St. Louis, IL
Sport: Track & Field
Event: Long jump and heptathlon
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