Marion Jones

full name:

Marion Jones

bio:

The fastest woman in the world? She dominated track and field for much of the late 1990's. She become the first woman in history to win five track and field medals in one Olympics: three gold, two bronze. However, there was controversy about claims she is implicated in the Balco Laboratories drug taking scandal, and in August 2006 was found to have EPO in her system. In 2007 she admitted that she had taken the banned performance enhancing substance THG in the lead up to the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

also known as:

"the fastest woman on the planet", drug cheat

born:

October 12, 1975
Los Angeles, California

family:

Parents: George and Marion Jones

education:

Rio Mesa High School, Thousand Oaks High School, University of North Carolina

physical attributes:

Height: 5-11
Weight: 150 lbs

sport:

Athletics

team / club:

Nike

events:

Sprints, Long Jump

personal bests:

100m - 10.65 sec (1998);
200m - 21.62 sec (1998)
400m - 49.59 sec (2000);
Long Jump - 7.31 m / 23-11.75 (1998).

achievements:

• Highlights: 2000 Olympic 100m, 200m & 4x400m champ, bronze medal in LJ and 4x100m; 2-time World 100m champion (‘97, ‘99); 2-time World 4x100m champion (‘97, ‘01); 2001 World 200m gold medalist; 12-time U.S. Outdoor Champion (3 in LJ, 4 in 100, 5 in 200); 2002 U.S. Champion (100m & 200m); 1999 World LJ bronze medalist; 2002 World Cup 100m gold medalist

• Jones made history at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia, winning three gold medals, the 100-meter dash, the 200-meter dash, and the 1,600-meter relay, and two bronze medals, in the long jump and the 400-meter relay. She's the first woman to win five medals at one Olympics.

what you may not know:

After watching Florence Griffith Joyner and Jackie Joyner-Kersee compete at the Seoul Olympics, Marion, an eighth-grader, wrote on a school blackboard: "I want to be an Olympic champion."