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Jackie Joyner-Kersee Facts & Worksheets

Jackie Joyner-Kersee is a multi talented athlete and considered America’s track star of the 1980s and 1990s.

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Jackie Joyner-Kersee is a multi talented athlete and considered America’s track star of the 1980s and 1990s. Joyner-Kersee was the first-ever American to win a gold medal in the long jump competition. She was also the first-ever woman in history that achieved more than 7,000 points in the seven-event heptathlon.

See the fact file below for more information on the Jackie Joyner-Kersee or alternatively, you can download our 24-page Jackie Joyner-Kersee worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

BIOGRAPHY

  • Jackie Joyner-Kersee, the multi talented athlete, was born on March 3, 1962, in East St. Louis, Illinois, United States. East St. Louis is a city where poverty is very evident. Her parents, Alfred and Mary Joyner, were just teens when they got married.
  • Joyner-Kersee’s mother, Mary, was only 14 years old when she had her first child. Mary gave birth to Jackie at 16 years old. Despite being teens, both parents worked hard to provide for the family.
  • The Joyner family wanted better circumstances. There was a grandmother named Joyner-Kersee as “Jacqueline,” from the wife of the former U.S. president, John F. Kennedy, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. It was because they hoped that Joyner-Kersee would be the “first lady” of something someday.
  • Joyner-Kersee spent her childhood studying modern dance at the local community center. However, one day, she encountered a sign about an advertisement for a new track program. Joyner-Kersee decided to join the said program.
  • On her first try, Joyner-Kersee lost every race, but as time went by, she began winning. In 1976, Joyner-Kersee watched the Olympics and told herself that she wanted to go and wanted to be on television.
  • After that, Joyner-Kersee worked harder every day, and later on became a tremendously versatile athlete at a very tender age. Her first competitor was her older brother Al.
  • At the age of 14, Joyner-Kersee won her first national junior pentathlon championship. Track and field events were only part of her strengths. In high school, Joyner-Kersee was a state champion in both track and basketball.

JOYNER-KERSEE’S CAREER ON TRACK

  • Many high-ranking colleges recruited Joyner-Kersee because of her skills. She chose the University of California at Los Angeles. In 1980, she started studying at the university on a basketball scholarship.
  • Mary Joyner, the mother of Joyner-Kersee, died because of a rare type of meningitis that made Jackie and Al Joyner dedicated and focused more on athletics.
  • At the university Joyner-Kersee was a starting player for the Bruins and a long-jump player for the track team.
  • Bob Kersee, who was the assistant track coach, saw that Jackie has tremendous ability and skill. Bob Kersee wanted to coach Jackie Joyner in multi-events. Joyner-Kersee was already a powerhouse player in the long jump competition and 200-meter sprint. She had good endurance because she also played as a top-scoring forward for the basketball team.
  • Al Joyner, her brother, also taught Joyner-Kersee to run hurdles and throw the javelin-type of spear and the shot put – a a heavy palm-sized metal ball that made her a more multi talented athlete.
  • In 1983, Joyner-Kersee was qualified for the world track and field championships in Helsinki, Finland. However, she experienced a torn hamstring muscle that made it difficult for her to join the championships.
  • In 1984, after recovering from her injuries, Joyner-Kersee was qualified to become part of the U.S. Olympic team.
  • Joyner-Kersee achieved the silver medal in the heptathlon, missing the gold by only .06 seconds in the 800-meter run.

SET RECORDS IN LONG JUMP AND HEPTATHLON

  • In 1985, Joyner-Kersee’s potential began to rise when she set a U.S. record of 23 feet 9 inches in the long jump. She also placed third in the world heptathlon. After that, Joyner-Kersee changed that ranking at the 1986 Goodwill Games in Moscow.
  • Joyner-Kersee was able to set a world record with 7,148 points, more than 200 points higher than her nearest competitor in history. After three weeks, she broke her record with 7,161 points in Houston.
  • She was recognized for her devotion in the heptathlon and received awards such as the coveted Jesse Owens Award and the 1986 Sullivan Award for being the best amateur athlete.
  • In the 1988 Olympics, Joyner-Kersee continued her world record breaking performance. Joyner-Kersee achieved a gold medal in the heptathlon and long jump with a distance of 24 feet, 3.5 inches.
  • Joyner-Kersee broke her world record in the heptathlon with 7,291 points, making it her fourth world record. With these, Joyner-Kersee became the first American woman to win the Olympic long jump with a gold medal. She was also the first-ever athlete after 64 years to win a gold medal in a multi-event and single event.
  • Since then, Joyner-Kersee could not be able to break her 1988 Olympic record. She re-injured her hamstring and had moments when she was almost giving up. In 1992, Joyner-Kersee sought to become the fourth woman in Olympic history to win four gold medals.
  • She was able to win a gold medal in the heptathlon, but she was only able to earn a bronze in the long jump.

JOYNER-KERSEE’S LATE CAREER

  • In the 1990s, she wanted to continue competing in track and field but wanted to end her Olympic career in America. Joyner-Kersee entered the 1996 Olympics, but she was suffering an injury in her hamstring. She was able to achieve a bronze medal in the long jump and withdrew from the heptathlon.
  • Joyner-Kersee continued competing in track and field events while functioning as the spokesperson for Nike’s Play Program. It is a program that raises funds for youth activity centers and provides scholarship money.
  • Joyner-Kersee also published an autobiography, “A New Kind of Grace” in 1997. In 1988, she became an agent with the National Football League Players Association and founded a sports management company representing athletes in different sports.
  • At the age of 36, Joyner-Kersee decided to retire from long jump, and up until her last event, Joyner-Kersee left with legendary performance and extraordinary skill.

Jackie Joyner-Kersee Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle which includes everything you need to know about the Jackie Joyner-Kersee across 24 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Jackie Joyner-Kersee worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about Jackie Joyner-Kersee who is a multi talented athlete and considered America’s track star of the 1980s and 1990s. Joyner-Kersee was the first-ever American to win a gold medal in the long jump competition. She was also the first-ever woman in history that achieved more than 7,000 points in the seven-event heptathlon.

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

  • Jackie Joyner-Kersee Facts
  • Kersee’s Profile Writing
  • Reaching Kersee’s Finish Line
  • Essentials in Track and Field
  • The Legendary Filling
  • Track and Field Events
  • The Jumbled Race
  • The Questions of Kersee
  • The Legendary Olympian
  • Kersee’s Analysis
  • Kersee’s Advice

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Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

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