| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nationality | United States | ||||||||||||||
| Born | December 28, 1995 | ||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||
| Sport | Athletics | ||||||||||||||
| Event | Heptathlon | ||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | |||||||||||||||
| Personal bests | Heptathlon 5903 (Des Moines, 2019) Decathlon 8246 (San Mateo, 2021) NR | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Jordan Gray (born December 28, 1995) is an American track and field athlete. She won the bronze medal in the heptathlon at the 2023 Pan American Games. She is the American national record holder in the decathlon. [1]
The daughter of Jackie and Jeff Gray, Gray was brought up in Ball Ground, Georgia. Along with competing in athletics, she has a black belt in taekwondo, has worked as a professional photographer, and plays the ukulele. Gray is a Christian. She attended Kennesaw State University. [2]
In June 2019, Gray set a new American national record of 7,921 points for the decathlon at the National Women's Decathlon Championships at College of San Mateo, California. [3] That month she secured seventh place in the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the heptathlon with a tally of 5846 points. In July 2019, she set a new heptathlon PB, scoring 5903 at the 2019 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Des Moines, Iowa. Later that year, she represented America and competed abroad for the first time, at the Thorpe Cup. [4]
In August 2021, she raised her decathlon national record to 8,246 points competing in at the College of San Mateo. It placed her third on the world all-time list behind only Austra Skujytė of Lithuania and Marie Collonvillé of France, and was the best score recorded since 2006. [5] In response to the lack of opportunities for women to compete in the decathlon she launched a campaign called “Let Women Decathlon.” [6]
Gray won the bronze medal in the heptathlon at the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile in November 2023. [7] [8]
The decathlon is a combined event in athletics consisting of 10 track and field events. The word "decathlon" was formed, in analogy to the word "pentathlon", from Greek δέκα and ἄθλος. Events are held over two consecutive days and the winners are determined by the combined performance in all. Performance is judged on a points system in each event, not by the position achieved. The decathlon is contested mainly by male athletes, while female athletes typically compete in the heptathlon.
Chris Huffins is an athlete from the United States who competed in the field of Decathlon. He was the Director and Head Coach of the Men's and Women's Track and Field and Cross Country programs at the University of California from 2002 to 2007. He married Monique Parker in 1997 with whom he had one son Zachary. He earned a degree from the University of California in Political Economies of Industrial Societies in 2007. Huffins is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity. He is currently married to Tamika Huffins with whom he had another son, Jaxon.
Jessica Zelinka is a Canadian pentathlete, heptathlete, and 100 m hurdler. Her personal best score is 6599 points for the heptathlon. She was the gold medalist at the 2007 Pan American Games. Zelinka won silver at the 2010 Commonwealth Games and repeated her silver medal at the 2014 Commonwealth Games. At the 2012 Summer Olympics Zelinka finished in 6th overall in the heptathlon and 7th in the 100 m hurdles.
Curtis Beach is an American decathlete who competed for Duke University. He formerly held high school records in the decathlon using three different implement standards: high school, international junior and international senior. His performances in the high jump, 400 meters, and 1500 meters were superior to those of U.S. Olympic gold medalist Bryan Clay in the 2008 Olympic Games. At the 2011 NCAA Men's Outdoor Track and Field Championship, as a freshman, Beach finished second overall in the decathlon. His 3:59.13 finish in the 1500 meters shattered the previous collegiate record and is the second-fastest 1500 meter in world history for a decathlon, just missing Robert Baker's mark from 1980.
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James Edward "Trey" Hardee III is a retired American track and field athlete who specialized in the combined events. He is a former NCAA Champion, a two-time World Outdoor Champion, a member of the United States 2008 Olympic team, and the silver medalist in the decathlon at the London 2012 Olympics. He was Inducted into the Texas Track and Field Hall of Fame in 2018.
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Damian David George Warner is a Canadian track and field athlete specializing in decathlon. He is the 2020 Olympic champion and a four-time world medallist. Warner also won the bronze medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics and was the 2014 Commonwealth champion and a two-time Pan American champion from the 2015 and 2019 Games. Competing in the heptathlon, he is the 2022 World Indoor champion.
Chantae McMillan is an American heptathlete who competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.
Shalaya Kipp is an American middle-distance runner who competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in the 3000 meter steeplechase.
James Gunnar Nixon is an American track and field athlete who competes in the decathlon. He broke the American high school record for the event in 2011, and was the World Junior Champion in 2012. He won his first national title indoors in 2013, and was runner-up at the 2013 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. His personal record for the decathlon is 8313 points at the 2013 IAAF World Championships.
Ana Camila Donatella Pirelli Cubas is a Paraguayan track and field athlete who competes in the heptathlon. She is the Paraguayan record holder in the event with a personal best score of 5733 points. Pirelli holds more than a dozen national records in events as varied as the 100 metres hurdles, shot put and the indoor women's pentathlon. Pirelli was the heptathlon silver medallist at the 2013 South American Championships in Athletics. She won the gold medal at the 2013 Bolivarian Games and the 2014 South American Games, breaking games records at both competitions. Pirelli is tied to Paraguay Marathon Club and competes in Paraguay's national competitions under the Federación Paraguaya de Atletismo.
Adolphus "Dolly" Jones[nb] is a Kittitian and Nevisian track and field athlete and soccer player.
Lindon Victor is a Grenadian athlete who competes in the decathlon. He is the 2023 World and 2024 Olympic bronze medalist and a two-time Commonwealth Games champion (2018–2022).
The USATF U20 Outdoor Championships, formerly known as the USA Junior Outdoor Track & Field Championships, is an annual outdoor track and field competition organized by USA Track & Field (USATF) which serves as the national championship for American athletes aged under 20. The competition is also used for American national team selection for the IAAF World U20 Championships in even-numbered years and the Pan American U20 Athletics Championships in odd-numbered years.
Hope Bender is an American track and field athlete, known for multiple events and hurdles. She competed for the Santa Barbara Track Club and coached at UC Santa Barbara Gauchos before moving to San Marcos, Texas to train at Texas State University in Fall 2023. Bender studied to be a Biotechnology engineer.
The 2019 IAAF Combined Events Challenge was the 22nd edition of the global series of combined track and field event meetings organised by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). It featured decathlon for men and heptathlon for women. A total of eleven meetings were in the 2019 series, starting at the Multistars meet on 27 April and finishing at the 2019 World Athletics Championships on 4 October.
Anna Hall is an American athlete specializing in the combined events. She won the silver medal in the heptathlon at the 2023 World Championships and the bronze medal at the 2022 World Championships. Hall is the North American indoor record holder for the pentathlon.
Erin Marsh is an American track and field athlete. She won the gold medal in the heptathlon at the 2023 Pan American Games.
