Mike Powell (long jumper) facts for kids
Powell announces at a press conference that he will attempt to break the World Masters record
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| Full name | Michael Anthony Powell | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | November 10, 1963 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
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| Height | 6 ft 2 in | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 170 lb | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Sport | Track and field | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Event(s) | Long jump | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coached by | Randy Huntington | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Personal best(s) |
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Medal record
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| Updated on August 6, 2012. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Michael Anthony Powell (born November 10, 1963) is a famous American track and field athlete. He is best known for holding the long jump world record. Mike Powell also won two world championships and two Olympic silver medals in the long jump. He set his amazing world record of 8.95 m (29 ft 4.23720473 in) meters on August 30, 1991.
Contents
Mike Powell's Early Life
Growing Up in Pennsylvania
Mike Powell was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He later attended Edgewood High School in West Covina, California. During his high school years, he was a talented athlete. In 1981, he jumped 7 feet (2.13 m) in the high jump. This was at the CIF California State Meet.
College and Athletics
After high school, Mike Powell went to the University of California, Irvine. He later transferred to the University of California, Los Angeles. While in college, he became a member of the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity.
Mike Powell's Athletics Career
Olympic Success
Mike Powell had a very successful career in the long jump. In 1988, he won a silver medal at the Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. He won another long jump silver medal at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Spain.
Breaking the World Record
One of Mike Powell's most famous achievements happened on August 30, 1991. This was at the 1991 World Championships in Athletics in Tokyo, Japan. He broke Bob Beamon's long jump world record. Beamon's record had stood for almost 23 years!
Powell jumped an incredible 8.95 m (29 ft 4.23720473 in) meters. This was 5 cm (2 in) farther than the old record. His world record still stands today. It is the longest-standing long jump world record ever. For this amazing feat, he received the James E. Sullivan Award. He also won the BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year Award in 1991.
Other Achievements
Mike Powell also holds the record for the longest wind-assisted jump. This jump was 8.99 m (29 ft 5.81200788 in) meters. It happened in 1992 in Sestriere, Italy. He also won two gold medals at the World Championships. These were in 1993 in Stuttgart, Germany and 1991 in Tokyo. He also earned a bronze medal at the 1995 World Championships in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Retirement and Comeback Attempts
After competing in the 1996 Olympics, Mike Powell retired from professional long jumping. He tried to make a comeback in 2001. His goal was to compete in the 2004 Olympics. However, he was not able to join the American team.
After His Athletics Career
Working as an Analyst
After retiring, Mike Powell became an analyst. He worked for Yahoo! Sports covering Olympic Track & Field events. In July 2009, he announced he would try to compete again. He wanted to break the Masters over-45 world record in the long jump. This record was held by Tapani Taavitsainen.
Later Attempts and Coaching
On February 20, 2015, Mike Powell announced he would jump in competition again. This was at the Simplot Games in Pocatello, Idaho. He entered the Athletics New Zealand Track and Field Championships on March 7, 2015. This event was in Wellington, New Zealand. He hoped to break the World Masters record. Sadly, he got injured during warm-ups and could not compete.
Mike Powell's daughter, Micha Powell, is also an athlete. In July 2016, she was named an alternate for Canada's Olympic team. This was for the Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Her mother, Rosey Edeh, also competed in the 400 meters hurdles at the 1996 Olympics.
Since the fall of 2022, Mike Powell has been coaching long jump. He coaches at Azusa Pacific University in California.
See also
In Spanish: Mike Powell para niños
