Franklin Jacobs

Last updated

Franklin Jacobs
Personal information
Nationality American
Born (1957-12-31) December 31, 1957 (age 66)
Sport
CountryFlag of the United States (23px).png  United States
Sport Athletics
Event High jump
Achievements and titles
Personal best
  • High jump: 2.32 m (1978)

Franklin Jacobs (born December 31, 1957 [1] ) is a former high jumper from the United States. His personal best of 2.32 meters (7 ft 7+1⁄4 in) was a world indoor record in 1978, [2] and at 59 centimeters (23 in) above Jacobs' own height of 1.73 meters (5 ft 8 in), [2] it remains the record for height differential, now held jointly with Stefan Holm. [3]

Contents

Biography

Jacobs was one of ten children of Jannie Jacobs, living in a shack in Mullins, South Carolina. [4] His parents separated when he was young. [5] The impoverished family moved to Paterson, New Jersey when he was three and lived with four cousins. [4] His first love was basketball, and he played for Paterson East-side High. [4] He only started high jumping in his senior year, after the end of the basketball season. [4] He cleared 6 feet 8 inches (2.03 m) that year. [4] His natural talent overcame his lack of technique: he called his style the "Jacobs Slop", as opposed to the Fosbury Flop; [6] but later renamed it the "Slope", from the trajectory of his launch. [7]

Jacobs barely graduated high school and got no athletic scholarship, but enrolled at Fairleigh Dickinson University in Teaneck, New Jersey with a federal grant. [4] He cleared 7 feet 1 inch (2.16 m) in his freshman year. [4] In March 1977 he tore cartilage in his right leg playing basketball, but competed for over a year without surgery. [5] He established a rivalry with Dwight Stones over the next two years, [4] with media emphasizing the contrast between Jacobs, a short inner-city African American, and Stones, a tall blond Californian. [8] Stones antagonized Jacobs by criticizing his unorthodox jumping style. [5] Jacobs beat Stones at the 1978 Millrose Games in Madison Square Garden, at which he set a world indoor record of 2.32 meters (7 ft 7+1⁄4 in). [6] He waived his right to try for an even higher record, saying he "didn't feel nervous enough". [6] Two months later, Vladimir Yashchenko broke the record in Milan. [9] In July, at a highly publicized international between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, Jacobs lost to Yashchenko on countback. [10] In August, Jacobs won the Tanqueray Award for outstanding amateur athlete; by then he had won 27 collegiate events. [11]

Jacobs anticipated gaining lucrative endorsements from the 1980 Olympics, but the U.S. boycott of the Games precluded this. [8] He was extremely disappointed and wanted to skip the U.S. "Olympic Trials"; he attended by request of his college, but failed his opening height. [2] He gave up the high jump and did not return to college. [8] A planned return to competition in 1982 [12] did not happen. [2] In 1991, he commented, "I was upset and my dreams were shattered. I probably could have come back in 1984, but I was a naive kid. It was like the floor fell in." [13]

He subsequently had various jobs around Paterson, [2] [8] working for a construction company 1986–91. [13] He married Naomi Livingston c.1990 and had a daughter Shannon in 1992. [2] [8] Around 1995, they moved to Gilbert, Arizona. [2] In 1998 he was working for an electrical installation company. [2] [8] That year, he attended a Millrose Games tribute to stars of memorable previous meets. [2]

Championship results

YearTournamentVenueResultHeight (m)
1977 NCAA Outdoor Champaign, Illinois 2nd2.26 [14]
1977 US Nationals Los Angeles, California 2nd2.27 [1]
1978 NCAA Indoor Detroit, Michigan 1st2.25 [fn 1] [15]
1978 NCAA Outdoor Eugene, Oregon 1st2.26 [16]
1978US NationalsLos Angeles, California2nd2.24 [1]
1979US Nationals Walnut, California 1st2.26 [fn 2] [1] [17]
1979 Pan American Games San Juan, Puerto Rico 1st2.26 [1]
1979 World Cup Montreal, Canada 1st2.27 [1]
1980 NCAA Indoor Detroit, Michigan1st2.24 [15]
1980 US Indoor Nationals New York City [18] 1st2.24 [fn 3] [19]
1980US NationalsWalnut, California1st2.24 [fn 3] [1] [17]
  1. ↑ Officially, 7 ft 5 in; NCAA switched to metric in 1979.
  2. ↑ Officially, 7 ft 5 in; USATF switched to metric in 2003.
  3. 1 2 Officially, 7 ft 41⁄4 in; USATF switched to metric in 2003.

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Nonna, Michael. "Franklin Jacobs". Track and Field Statistics. brinkster.net. Retrieved April 30, 2009.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Litsky, Frank (February 13, 1998). "High Jumper Resurfaces For Honor at Millrose". The New York Times . p. C8. Retrieved April 30, 2009.
  3. ↑ Sampaolo, Diego (January 14, 2009). "The super consistency of Stefan Holm". torino2009. European Indoor Athletics Championships. Archived from the original on December 10, 2019. Retrieved April 30, 2009.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Looney, Douglas S. (February 13, 1978). "A Mite Over The Bar". Sports Illustrated .
  5. 1 2 3 Rhoden, Bill; photographer G. Marshall Wilson (May 1978). "A big victory for the 'Little People'". Ebony : 82–88.
  6. 1 2 3 Putnam, Pat (February 6, 1978). "The Slop And Hustle Take Over". Sports Illustrated .
  7. ↑ Company, Johnson Publishing (June 8, 1978). "Franklin Jacobs adds new technique to high jump". Jet : 52.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Madden, Bill (February 8, 1998). "Jumpin' outta sight". New York Daily News . Retrieved April 30, 2009.
  9. ↑ Reid, Ron (March 20, 1978). "An Encore On A High Note". Sports Illustrated .
  10. ↑ Marshall, Joe (July 17, 1978). "Not Quite As High, But A Bit Mightier". Sports Illustrated .
  11. ↑ Company, Johnson Publishing (August 17, 1978). "Franklin Jacobs wins 1978 Tanqueray award". Jet : 46.
  12. ↑ Litsky, Frank (February 9, 1982). "Jacobs starting high jump comeback". The New York Times . p. B19. Retrieved April 30, 2009.
  13. 1 2 Curry, Jack (February 4, 1991). "Sidelines: You can't hide: After 13 years, Jacobs speaks". The New York Times . p. C2. Retrieved April 30, 2009.
  14. ↑ "High Jump – 1977-06-04". 1977 Men's Division I Outdoor Track And Field. NCAA . Retrieved April 30, 2009.
  15. 1 2 "Indoor Track and Field: Division I men's" (PDF). NCAA. 2008. pp. 2, 5. Retrieved April 30, 2009.[ dead link ]
  16. ↑ "High Jump – 1978-06-03". 1978 Men's Division I Outdoor Track And Field. NCAA . Retrieved April 30, 2009.
  17. 1 2 "Men's High Jump". USA Outdoor Track & Field Champions. USATF. Archived from the original on June 11, 2011. Retrieved April 30, 2009.
  18. ↑ "USA Indoor Track & Field Championships". USATF. Archived from the original on February 16, 2009. Retrieved April 30, 2009.
  19. ↑ "Men's High Jump". USA Indoor Track & Field Champions. USATF. Archived from the original on February 16, 2009. Retrieved April 30, 2009.
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