Marion Jones
Marion Jones was born in Los Angeles, California on October 12, 1975. As early as the age of 5, she was able to outrun her older brothers, and before athletics became a part of her life, she played tetherball with a passion.
She began playing basketball at an early age, and also made it onto her junior high school track team. She won both the 100- and 200-meter sprints at the California High School state meets four years running, between 1990 and 1993. She also won the same events at the USA Juniors meet of ‘91 and ‘92, and was named High School Athlete of the Year those same two years.
During the 1992 Olympic trials, 16-year-old Jones finished fourth in the 200m and fifth in the 100m, and declined an offer to run on the 4×100m relay team. She participated in her first World Juniors that same year, where she finished fifth in the 100m and seventh in the 200m, and also played on the U.S. World Junior Championship basketball team. Track & Field News ranked her No. 5 in the U.S. in both the 100m and 200m that year.
Jones graduated from Thousand Oaks High in 1993 and went on to study journalism at the University of North Carolina on a basketball scholarship. She was a star player with the Lady Tar Heels, leading them on to two record-setting seasons, as well as the 1994 NCAA Women’s Championships. That same year, she won both the 100m and the long jump at the ACC Championships; in 1995, she repeated her winning performance in the long jump at the same meet.
In 1996, Jones broke her foot while playing basketball, and as a result of her injury, was unable to try out for the U.S. Olympic track and field squad. By the time she graduated from university in 1997, she had made up her mind to concentrate solely on athletics, with the dream of becoming the fastest female sprinter on the planet. She claimed her first major international title that same year, winning the 100m race at the 1997 World Championships in Athens. She followed up with wins in the 100m and the long jump at the 1997 USA Outdoor Track & Field championships. Track & Field News ranked her No. 1 in the world in the 100m and 200m, as well as No. 2 in the U.S. in the long jump.
1998 proved to be a major year for Jones, as she finished first in 35 of 36 competitions. Highlights included first-place finishes in the 100m and 200m at the IAFF World Cup, as well as at the Goodwill Games. Track & Field News ranked her No. 1 in world in the 100m, 200m and the long jump, and also named her Athlete of the Year. On the personal front, she married world champion shot putter CJ Hunter, but they divorced in 2001.
In 1999, Jones won the 200m and placed second in the long jump at the USA Outdoors meet. She hoped to take four titles at that year’s World Championships, but withdrew from the meet after injuring her back during the 200m. She did, however, manage to win gold in the 100m and bronze in long jump before taking the rest of the season off to recuperate.
Credit : Askmen.com
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