Linford Christie facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Linford Christie
OBE

Christie in 2009
Personal information
Nationality	British
Born	(1960-04-02) 2 April 1960 (age 65) Saint Andrew, Jamaica
Height	6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Medal record Men's athletics Representing  Great Britain Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 1 2 0 World Championships 1 1 2 World Indoor Championships 0 2 0 European Championships 3 1 2 European Indoor Championships 3 0 1 Commonwealth Games 3 2 0 Total 11 8 5 Olympic Games Gold 1992 Barcelona 100 m Silver 1988 Seoul 100 m Silver 1988 Seoul 4 × 100 m relay World Championships Gold 1993 Stuttgart 100 m Silver 1993 Stuttgart 4 × 100 m relay Bronze 1987 Rome 100 m Bronze 1991 Tokyo 4 × 100 m relay World Indoor Championships Silver 1991 Seville 60 m Silver 1991 Seville 200 m European Championships Gold 1986 Stuttgart 100 m Gold 1990 Split 100 m Gold 1994 Helsinki 100 m Silver 1990 Split 4 × 100 m relay Bronze 1990 Split 200 m Bronze 1986 Stuttgart 4 × 100 m relay European Indoor Championships Gold 1986 Madrid 200 m Gold 1988 Budapest 60 m Gold 1990 Glasgow 60 m Bronze 1988 Budapest 200 m Representing  England Commonwealth Games Gold 1990 Auckland 100 m Gold 1990 Auckland 4 × 100 m relay Gold 1994 Victoria 100 m Silver 1986 Edinburgh 100 m Silver 1986 Edinburgh 4 × 100 m relay
Updated on 20 July 2012.

Linford Christie is a famous British former sprinter and athletics coach. He was born in Saint Andrew, Jamaica on April 2, 1960. He is the only British man to have won gold medals in the 100 metres at four major international competitions. These include the Olympic Games, the World Championships, the European Championships, and the Commonwealth Games.

Linford Christie was the first European athlete to run the 100-meter race in under 10 seconds. He held the British record for this event for nearly 30 years. He also held the world indoor record for the 200 metres and European records for the 60 metres, 100 m, and 4 × 100 metres relay.

He is one of the most successful British athletes ever. By the end of his career, he had won 24 medals. This is more than any other British male athlete before or since. In 1993, he was named BBC Sports Personality of the Year. After retiring from racing, he became a coach. Two of his athletes, Darren Campbell and Katharine Merry, went on to win Olympic and World medals.

Early Life and School

Linford Christie was born in Saint Andrew, Jamaica. He lived there with his grandmother until he was seven years old. Then, he moved to Acton, London, England, to live with his parents. He went to Henry Compton Secondary School in Fulham, London. He was very good at physical education.

In 1977, he took part in the first ever London Youth Games. He represented the area of Hammersmith & Fulham. He also joined the Air Training Corps in 1978. Linford Christie did not start serious athletics training until he was 18.

Linford Christie's Athletics Career

Linford Christie's early career in track and field was not very easy. He was a slow starter in races. He did not even make the Great Britain team for the 1984 Summer Olympics. He started working with coach Ron Roddan in 1979. With hard work, he began to reach his full potential.

Winning European and Commonwealth Medals

In 1986, Linford Christie surprisingly won the 100 m race at the European Championships. He also came second in the 100 m at the Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh. At the 1987 World Championships in Athletics in Rome, he finished fourth in the 100 m. He was later given the bronze medal. This happened after the original winner was disqualified.

Olympic Success

At the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, Linford Christie won the silver medal in the 100 m. He finished behind Carl Lewis. Christie's time was 9.97 seconds, which was a new European record. This was only the third time an athlete ran under ten seconds in the 100 meters without winning the race.

In 1992, Christie became the third British athlete to win the Olympic 100 m gold medal. He won the title at the Barcelona Olympic Games. He ran the final in 9.96 seconds. At 32 years old, he became the oldest Olympic 100 m champion.

World and Commonwealth Champion

In 1993, Linford Christie made history. He became the first man to hold the Olympic, World, European, and Commonwealth titles in the 100 m at the same time. He won at the Stuttgart World Championships with his fastest time ever, 9.87 seconds. This time was the British record until 2023. Because of this amazing achievement, he was voted BBC Sports Personality of the Year.

The next year, in 1994, he successfully defended his Commonwealth title in Victoria. He ran the 100 m in 9.91 seconds, his second fastest time.

Later Career and Retirement

At the 1996 Summer Olympics, Linford Christie was disqualified from the 100 m final. This happened after he made two false starts. He said he felt he reacted perfectly to the second start gun. He had never been disqualified from a race before.

Linford Christie stopped competing internationally in 1997. However, he still took part in some special invitation races.

Life After Running

After his athletics career, Linford Christie worked as a TV presenter. He appeared on BBC shows like Record Breakers and Garden Invaders. He also had a contract with BBC Sport. He spent more time managing his company, Nuff Respect.

In 1990, he acted in the BBC show Grange Hill. Later, he appeared in another BBC show called Hustle. In 2010, Christie was a contestant on the UK ITV show I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!. He was the sixth person to leave the show.

In November 2023, he appeared on The Masked Singer: I'm a Celebrity Special as Huntsman. He was the first contestant voted off. A documentary film about his life, called Linford, was shown on BBC One in July 2024.

Achievements and Legacy

Linford Christie said he would be happy if people remembered him as one of the best athletes in the world. His British record of 9.87 seconds in the 100 m stood for nearly 30 years. He was the third Briton and fifth European to win the 100 m at the Olympic Games. He was also the oldest male athlete to win the Olympic 100 m at 32 years old.

His 100 m personal best of 9.87 seconds makes him the third fastest European in history. Only Francis Obikwelu (9.86 s) and Jimmy Vicaut (9.87 s) have run as fast or faster. Christie broke the ten-second barrier nine times. He was the first European to do so. In the 1988 Olympic final, he was the first man to run under ten seconds and not win the race.

In the 4 × 100 m relay, Christie was the anchor runner. With teammates Colin Jackson, Tony Jarrett, and John Regis, they set a European record of 37.77 seconds in 1993. This was the second fastest 4 × 100 m performance by a European team.

Over 60 m, Christie set a European record of 6.47 seconds in 1995. He still holds three masters age group world records for athletes aged 35-39. He set the M35 world record in the 200 m (20.11 seconds) in 1995. He also set the M35 indoor record in the 60 m (6.51 seconds) in 1997.

Christie broke the world indoor record for 200 m with 20.25 seconds in 1995. He is still one of the fastest sprinters ever in that event.

He was given the MBE award in 1990 and the OBE award in 1998. In 1993, the West London Stadium, where he trained, was renamed the Linford Christie Stadium in his honor. A large sculpture called B of the Bang was named after a famous quote by Christie. It was unveiled by him in 2004. In 2010, he was added to the England Athletics Hall of Fame. In 2009, he joined the London Youth Games Hall of Fame.

Statistics

Personal Best Times

Seasonal Best Times

International Competitions

National Titles

Linford Christie won many national championships in the UK. He earned 19 outdoor championship gold medals. Eleven of these were in the AAA Championships, which were considered the most important national titles.

• UK Athletics Championships
  • 100 metres: 1985, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993
  • 200 metres: 1985 (shared with John Regis), 1988
• AAA Championships
  • 100 metres: 1985, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990†, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996
  • 200 metres: 1988
• AAA Indoor Championships
  • 60 metres: 1989, 1990, 1991
  • 200 metres: 1981, 1982, 1985†, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991
• † Christie was the top Briton behind Mel Lattany at the 1985 AAA Indoor 200 m
• †† Christie was the top Briton behind Calvin Smith at the 1990 AAA 100 m

Circuit Wins

100 metres

• Gateshead: 1985, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1996
• Meeting de Atletismo Madrid: 1986
• Prague: 1987
• Budapest: 1987
• Birmingham: 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1992
• London: 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1996
• Meeting Nikaïa: 1988
• Sheffield: 1991, 1993
• Notturna di Milano: 1992
• Cena Slovenska - Slovak Gold: 1992
• Golden Gala: 1992, 1993, 1997
• Bislett Games: 1992, 1993, 1995
• ISTAF Berlin: 1992
• Memorial Van Damme: 1993, 1994, 1995
• Gran Premio Diputación: 1994
• Live Nuremberg: 1994
• Weltklasse Zürich: 1994, 1995
• Toto International Super Meeting: 1994, 1995
• Perth Track Classic: 1995, 1996
• Meeting Lille-Métropole: 1995
• Rieti Meeting: 1995
• Melbourne Track Classic: 1997
• Adriaan Paulen Memorial: 1997

200 metres

• Gateshead: 1987, 1990
• Prague: 1987
• Birmingham: 1987, 1988, 1989
• Bislett Games: 1987
• Athens IAAF Indoor Meeting: 1987
• Indoor Flanders Meeting: 1988, 1991, 1994
• Cosford Indoor Games: 1988, 1989
• Sparkassen Cup: 1989, 1997
• London: 1991
• Weltklasse in Köln: 1993
• Meeting Pas de Calais: 1995
• Meeting Lille-Métropole: 1995

60 metres

• Glasgow International Match: 1988, 1991, 1994, 1995
• Cosford Indoor Games: 1989, 1990
• Sparkassen Cup: 1989, 1997
• Athens IAAF Indoor Meeting: 1989
• Indoor Flanders Meeting: 1991, 1994
• Sindelfingen Leichtathletik Grand Prix: 1992, 1994, 1995, 1997
• Birmingham Indoor Grand Prix: 1992, 1994
• Memorial José María Cagigal: 1994
• Gunma International: 1995
• Meeting Pas de Calais: 1995

Awards and Recognition

• European Athlete of the Year trophy: 1993
• BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award: 1993

Personal Life

Linford Christie has eight children. His niece Rachel Christie was crowned Miss England in 2009. His godson Omari Patrick is a professional football player.

In 1993, Christie started a sports management company called Nuff Respect. He co-founded it with sprint-hurdler Colin Jackson. They created a sports training video together. Jackson later left the company.

Images for kids

• 

  B of the Bang: a sculpture named after a Christie quotation

See also

In Spanish: Linford Christie para niños

• List of men's Olympic and World Championship athletics sprint champions
• List of 1988 Summer Olympics medal winners
• List of 1992 Summer Olympics medal winners
• List of Olympic medalists in athletics (men)
• List of World Athletics Championships medalists (men)
• List of IAAF World Indoor Championships medalists (men)
• List of Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics (men)
• List of European Athletics Championships medalists (men)
• List of European Athletics Indoor Championships medalists (men)
• List of 100 metres national champions (men)
• List of 200 metres national champions (men)
• 100 metres at the Olympics
• 4 × 100 metres relay at the Olympics
• 100 metres at the World Championships in Athletics
• 4 × 100 metres relay at the World Championships in Athletics
• Great Britain and Northern Ireland at the World Athletics Championships
• List of world records in athletics
• List of world records in masters athletics
• List of European records in masters athletics
• List of masters athletes
• List of sports announcers
• List of RAF Cadets
• List of Jamaican British people
• British African-Caribbean people