Tom Pappas

For the United States Army Colonel, see Thomas Pappas.

Tom Pappas

Tom Pappas in Eugene (2008)
Personal information
Nationality	United States
Born	(1976-09-06) September 6, 1976 (age 49) Azalea, Oregon, USA
Height	6 ft 5 in (196 cm) [1]
Weight	216 lb (98 kg) [1]
Sport
Sport	Athletics
Event	Decathlon
College team	Lane Titans (1995-96) Tennessee Volunteers (1997, 1999)
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)	Decathlon: 8,784 pts (2003) Heptathlon: 6,361 pts (2003)
Medal record Representing   United States World Championships 2003 Paris Decathlon World Indoor Championships 2003 Birmingham Heptathlon |}

Tom Pappas (born September 6, 1976) is a retired American decathlete.

Early life

Pappas was born in Azalea, Oregon. He graduated from Glendale High School in 1994, and from the University of Tennessee in 1999. ^[2]

Career

Pappas is a four-time U.S. champion (2000, 2002, 2003, 2006) and was the 1999 NCAA champion while attending the University of Tennessee. Before his time at Tennessee, Pappas also competed in the Northwest Athletic Conference for the Lane Titans track and field team. ^[3] He won the gold medal at the 2003 World Championships and was rated number 1 in the world that year by Track & Field News . His personal best in the decathlon is 8,784 points while winning the 2003 US Championships held at Stanford University. ^[4]

He won the 2003 Jesse Owens Award from USATF, an award given to the Athlete of the Year. ^[5]

Pappas finished fifth at the 2000 Olympic decathlon. ^[6] He placed third in the decathlon at the 2008 United States Olympic trials (track and field) in Eugene, Oregon, but was unable to complete the decathlon in Beijing due to a plantar fasciitis injury. ^[7]

Post-career

Pappas is the co-owner of Lane 5 Crossfit in Eugene, Oregon. ^[8]

Achievements

Year	Tournament	Venue	Result	Event
1999	World Championships	Seville	DNF	Decathlon
2000	Olympic Games	Sydney	5th	Decathlon
2001	Goodwill Games	Brisbane	3rd	Decathlon
2003	World Indoor Championships	Birmingham	1st	Heptathlon
	World Championships	Paris	1st	Decathlon
2004	Hypo-Meeting	Götzis	2nd	Decathlon
	Olympic Games	Athens	DNF	Decathlon
2008	Olympic Games	Beijing	DNF	Decathlon

Personal bests

Outdoor

Individual events

Event	Performance	Location	Date
Long jump	7.57 m (24 ft 10 in)	Indianapolis	July 7, 2000
High jump	2.10 m (6 ft 10+1⁄2 in)	Knoxville	April 10, 2004
100 meters	10.5h	Indianapolis	July 7, 2000
	10.63 (+2.3 m/s)	Knoxville	April 25, 2004
	10.90 (+1.9 m/s)	Columbia	April 13, 2006
400 meters	48.22	Knoxville	May 1, 1999
110 meters hurdles	13.7h	Indianapolis	July 7, 2000
	13.94 (+1.2 m/s)	Athens, GA	May 15, 1999
Pole vault	5.20 m (17 ft 1⁄2 in)	Indianapolis	July 7, 2000
Discus throw	51.61 m (169 ft 3+3⁄4 in)	El Paso	April 12, 2008
Javelin throw	66.12 m (216 ft 11 in)	Knoxville	April 15, 2000

Combined events

Event	Performance	Location	Date	Score
Decathlon	—	Palo Alto	June 22, 2003	8,784 points
100 meters	10.65 (−0.2 m/s)	Götzis	May 31, 2003	940 points
Long jump	7.96 m (26 ft 1+1⁄4 in)(+1.4 m/s)	Palo Alto	June 21, 2003	1,050 points
Shot put	17.26 m (56 ft 7+1⁄2 in)	Eugene	June 29, 2008	929 points
High jump	2.21 m (7 ft 3 in)	Sydney	September 27, 2000	1,002 points
400 meters	47.58	Saint-Denis	August 26, 2003	930 points
110 meters hurdles	13.90 (+0.3 m/s)	Götzis	May 30, 2004	987 points
Discus throw	51.57 m (169 ft 2+1⁄4 in)	Marburg	August 9, 2009	903 points
Pole vault	5.20 m (17 ft 1⁄2 in)	Eugene	June 30, 2008	972 points
Javelin throw	65.90 m (216 ft 2+1⁄4 in)	Saint-Denis	August 27, 2003	827 points
1500 meters	4:44.31	Saint-Denis	August 27, 2003	653 points
Virtual Best Performance				9,193 points

Indoor

Individual events

Event	Performance	Location	Date
800 meters	2:02.94	Manhattan, KS	February 15, 2007
Mile	5:03.53	New Haven	January 13, 2007
55 meters hurdles	7.27	Knoxville	February 21, 2003
60 meters hurdles	7.92	Blacksburg	January 16, 1999
Long jump	7.35 m (24 ft 1+1⁄4 in)	Gainesville	February 20, 1999
High jump	2.08 m (6 ft 9+3⁄4 in)	Blacksburg	February 6, 1999
Pole vault	5.18 m (16 ft 11+3⁄4 in)	Lexington	February 7, 2003
Shot put	16.83 m (55 ft 2+1⁄2 in)	Manhattan, KS	January 18, 2008

Combined events

Event	Performance	Location	Date	Score
Heptathlon	—	Birmingham	March 15–16, 2003	6,361 points
60 meters	6.89	Birmingham	March 15, 2003	922 points
Long jump	7.56 m (24 ft 9+1⁄2 in)	Birmingham	March 15, 2003	950 points
Shot put	16.23 m (53 ft 2+3⁄4 in)	Birmingham	March 15, 2003	865 points
High jump	2.21 m (7 ft 3 in)	Athens, GA	March 3, 2000	1,002 points
60 meters hurdles	7.80	Birmingham	March 16, 2003	1,033 points
Pole vault	5.03 m (16 ft 6 in)	Chapel Hill	March 2, 2002	920 points
1000 meters	2:49.32	Chapel Hill	March 7, 2004	773 points
Virtual Best Performance				6,465 points

References

1. "Tom Pappas". espn.com. Retrieved October 16, 2025.
2. Weir, Tom (August 5, 2004). "Understated decathlete Pappas faces 10 the hard way". usatoday.com. Archived from the original on August 23, 2004.
3. "Track & Field Records - Men". Lane Titans. Retrieved 30 January 2025.
4. Crumpacker, John (June 23, 2003). "Explosive White steals 200 title". sfgate.com.
5. "USA Track & Field - Annual Awards - Jesse Owens Award". USA Track & Field. Archived from the original on 2013-11-03. Retrieved 2013-08-02.
6. Schnell, Lindsay (August 16, 2008). "Olympics not new for Pappas, just his outlook". knoxnews.com.
7. Goe, Ken (August 21, 2008). "Tom Pappas is out of the decathlon". oregonlive.com.
8. "MEET OUR TALENTED COACHES". lane5crossfit.com. Retrieved May 22, 2024.

External links

• Tom Pappas at World Athletics

Awards
Preceded by Tim Montgomery	Men's Track & Field ESPY Award 2004	Succeeded by {{{after}}}