1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:05,080 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of iHeartRadio. 2 00:00:05,840 --> 00:00:09,600 Speaker 1: Hello and welcome to This Day in History Class, a 3 00:00:09,680 --> 00:00:13,280 Speaker 1: show that takes a flying leap through history every day 4 00:00:13,320 --> 00:00:18,440 Speaker 1: of the week. I'm Gabe Lucier, and today we're celebrating 5 00:00:18,480 --> 00:00:22,479 Speaker 1: the record setting win of four time Olympian athlete Jackie 6 00:00:22,600 --> 00:00:26,160 Speaker 1: Joyner Cursey, one of the greatest track and field stars 7 00:00:26,280 --> 00:00:36,600 Speaker 1: of all time. The day was August second, nineteen ninety two, 8 00:00:37,440 --> 00:00:41,479 Speaker 1: American athlete Jackie Joyner Cursey became the first woman to 9 00:00:41,560 --> 00:00:47,120 Speaker 1: win two consecutive Olympic gold medals in the heptathlon. As 10 00:00:47,159 --> 00:00:52,080 Speaker 1: the name suggests, the heptathlon is a seven sport competition. 11 00:00:52,880 --> 00:00:56,400 Speaker 1: The women's version consists of the one hundred meter hurdles, 12 00:00:56,600 --> 00:00:59,640 Speaker 1: the high jump, the shot put, the two hundred meters, 13 00:01:00,560 --> 00:01:04,720 Speaker 1: the running long jump, and the javelin throw. The seven 14 00:01:04,760 --> 00:01:08,880 Speaker 1: events are split across two days, and competitors are scored 15 00:01:08,920 --> 00:01:12,759 Speaker 1: on their performance in each event. A high level performance 16 00:01:12,840 --> 00:01:15,760 Speaker 1: typically earns a score of about one thousand points for 17 00:01:15,800 --> 00:01:19,280 Speaker 1: a single event, so if an athlete's combined score is 18 00:01:19,400 --> 00:01:24,200 Speaker 1: seven thousand points or higher, they've essentially run a perfect heptathlon. 19 00:01:25,360 --> 00:01:28,720 Speaker 1: Jackie Joyner Kersey was the first woman to breach that 20 00:01:28,880 --> 00:01:32,760 Speaker 1: seven thousand point barrier, and she repeated the feat multiple 21 00:01:32,800 --> 00:01:36,400 Speaker 1: times over the course of her career. In fact, her 22 00:01:36,480 --> 00:01:40,960 Speaker 1: best score seven two hundred ninety one is still the 23 00:01:40,959 --> 00:01:44,559 Speaker 1: world record for the heptathlon as of twenty twenty four, 24 00:01:46,160 --> 00:01:50,200 Speaker 1: now considered one of the greatest heptathletes in history. Jackie 25 00:01:50,280 --> 00:01:54,000 Speaker 1: Joyner was born on March third, nineteen sixty two, in 26 00:01:54,080 --> 00:01:58,720 Speaker 1: East Saint Louis, Illinois. She was named Jacqueline, after President 27 00:01:58,800 --> 00:02:02,720 Speaker 1: John F. Kennedy's wife, because, as her grandmother put it, quote, 28 00:02:03,040 --> 00:02:06,320 Speaker 1: someday this girl will be the first lady of something. 29 00:02:07,360 --> 00:02:10,440 Speaker 1: That something turned out to be track and field, which 30 00:02:10,560 --> 00:02:14,160 Speaker 1: Jackie first took an interest in at age nine. Growing 31 00:02:14,240 --> 00:02:17,000 Speaker 1: up poor, she didn't always have access to the best 32 00:02:17,040 --> 00:02:21,119 Speaker 1: facilities or equipment, so instead she fashioned a jumping pit 33 00:02:21,200 --> 00:02:24,440 Speaker 1: in her own backyard. It was made from sand that 34 00:02:24,520 --> 00:02:28,000 Speaker 1: her sister smuggled home from a nearby park, one potato 35 00:02:28,080 --> 00:02:32,680 Speaker 1: chip bag at a time. All her backyard training paid off, 36 00:02:32,919 --> 00:02:35,240 Speaker 1: and by the time Jackie was in high school, she 37 00:02:35,360 --> 00:02:38,320 Speaker 1: was a dominating athlete, both on the track and on 38 00:02:38,360 --> 00:02:43,040 Speaker 1: the basketball court. Her skills earned her a scholarship to UCLA, 39 00:02:43,320 --> 00:02:46,280 Speaker 1: where she met track coach Bob Cursey, whom she would 40 00:02:46,360 --> 00:02:50,560 Speaker 1: later marry. At age twenty two, Jackie Joyner made her 41 00:02:50,680 --> 00:02:54,200 Speaker 1: first of four Olympic appearances at the nineteen eighty four 42 00:02:54,240 --> 00:02:57,799 Speaker 1: Games in Los Angeles. She placed fifth in the long 43 00:02:57,919 --> 00:03:01,560 Speaker 1: jump competition and took home a silly medal for the heptathlon, 44 00:03:02,040 --> 00:03:06,600 Speaker 1: falling short of first place by just five points. Joyner 45 00:03:06,760 --> 00:03:09,960 Speaker 1: rallied after her defeat and spent the next four years 46 00:03:10,000 --> 00:03:15,000 Speaker 1: winning international competitions and setting world records. She also married 47 00:03:15,040 --> 00:03:18,160 Speaker 1: her longtime trainer and changed her name to Joiner Cursey. 48 00:03:19,040 --> 00:03:22,440 Speaker 1: Among her many victories during this period was the nineteen 49 00:03:22,520 --> 00:03:25,960 Speaker 1: eighty six Goodwill Games, where she first broke the seven 50 00:03:26,000 --> 00:03:30,400 Speaker 1: thousand point barrier for the heptathlon. One month later, she 51 00:03:30,480 --> 00:03:33,600 Speaker 1: beat her own record at the Olympic Festival, and then 52 00:03:33,800 --> 00:03:36,960 Speaker 1: at the Olympic Trials in nineteen eighty eight, she beat 53 00:03:37,000 --> 00:03:41,160 Speaker 1: it again. The five foot ten, one hundred fifty pound 54 00:03:41,240 --> 00:03:45,920 Speaker 1: athlete kept the momentum going at that year's Olympics in Seoul. First, 55 00:03:46,080 --> 00:03:49,760 Speaker 1: she set her still standing heptathlon world record of seven 56 00:03:49,800 --> 00:03:53,960 Speaker 1: thou two hundred ninety one points. Then five days later 57 00:03:54,280 --> 00:03:57,280 Speaker 1: she won her second gold medal by setting a new 58 00:03:57,320 --> 00:04:00,240 Speaker 1: Olympic best in the long jump, with her leap of 59 00:04:00,320 --> 00:04:04,640 Speaker 1: twenty four feet three and a quarter inches. That made 60 00:04:04,720 --> 00:04:08,040 Speaker 1: Joiner Cursey the first American woman to earn a gold 61 00:04:08,080 --> 00:04:13,320 Speaker 1: medal in each of those events. Her wins hadn't come easy, though, 62 00:04:13,920 --> 00:04:17,880 Speaker 1: some accused her of using performance enhancing drugs, though she 63 00:04:17,960 --> 00:04:21,920 Speaker 1: had never failed a drug test. Joiner Cursey also grappled 64 00:04:21,960 --> 00:04:24,719 Speaker 1: with chronic asthma, which she had been diagnosed with in 65 00:04:24,760 --> 00:04:28,200 Speaker 1: nineteen eighty three. She went on to have several full 66 00:04:28,240 --> 00:04:31,400 Speaker 1: blown attacks during training and sometimes had to wear a 67 00:04:31,440 --> 00:04:36,320 Speaker 1: mask while competing. Despite those setbacks, Joiner Cursey returned for 68 00:04:36,400 --> 00:04:39,920 Speaker 1: her third Summer Games at the nineteen ninety two Olympics 69 00:04:39,920 --> 00:04:43,640 Speaker 1: in Barcelona. Now a seasoned pro, she was a heavy 70 00:04:43,720 --> 00:04:47,320 Speaker 1: favorite to win the heptathlon gold, and true to the hype, 71 00:04:47,360 --> 00:04:51,400 Speaker 1: she led the field through the whole event. On August second, 72 00:04:51,600 --> 00:04:54,400 Speaker 1: she entered the second day of competition with a lead 73 00:04:54,440 --> 00:04:58,120 Speaker 1: of one hundred and twenty nine points with three events remaining. 74 00:04:58,960 --> 00:05:01,800 Speaker 1: First up was the long jump, one of her specialty. 75 00:05:02,560 --> 00:05:05,320 Speaker 1: She expanded her lead with a leap of twenty three 76 00:05:05,400 --> 00:05:08,360 Speaker 1: feet three inches and then followed it up by throwing 77 00:05:08,400 --> 00:05:13,080 Speaker 1: the javelin one hundred and forty seven feet and seven inches. Lastly, 78 00:05:13,279 --> 00:05:16,200 Speaker 1: she ran her way into the winners circle by completing 79 00:05:16,240 --> 00:05:19,400 Speaker 1: the eight hundred meters sprint in the respectable time of 80 00:05:19,480 --> 00:05:24,200 Speaker 1: two minutes eleven seconds. That strong finish gave her a 81 00:05:24,240 --> 00:05:28,359 Speaker 1: score of seven thousand, forty four points, earning her her 82 00:05:28,400 --> 00:05:33,039 Speaker 1: second back to back gold medal for the heptathlon. That 83 00:05:33,160 --> 00:05:36,560 Speaker 1: win also marked the sixth time in her career that 84 00:05:36,640 --> 00:05:40,320 Speaker 1: she'd broken the seven thousand point barrier, though her score 85 00:05:40,360 --> 00:05:43,520 Speaker 1: in Barcelona wasn't enough to top the world record she 86 00:05:43,560 --> 00:05:48,640 Speaker 1: had set herself four years earlier. Although not as widely celebrated, 87 00:05:48,720 --> 00:05:53,120 Speaker 1: Joyner Kersey also won consecutive bronze medals in the long jump, 88 00:05:53,480 --> 00:05:56,560 Speaker 1: the first in Barcelona and the second at the nineteen 89 00:05:56,640 --> 00:06:00,680 Speaker 1: ninety six Olympics in Atlanta that proved to be the 90 00:06:00,720 --> 00:06:04,640 Speaker 1: final Olympics showing of Joyner Cursey's long and storied career. 91 00:06:05,400 --> 00:06:08,839 Speaker 1: A lingering hamstring injury forced her to withdraw from that 92 00:06:08,960 --> 00:06:12,560 Speaker 1: year's heptathlon, and in two thousand and one she formally 93 00:06:12,600 --> 00:06:16,240 Speaker 1: retired from the sport at age thirty eight at the 94 00:06:16,279 --> 00:06:19,320 Speaker 1: time of recording, It remains to be seen whether Joyner 95 00:06:19,400 --> 00:06:23,039 Speaker 1: Cursey's long running record will still stand after the twenty 96 00:06:23,120 --> 00:06:27,320 Speaker 1: twenty four Olympics in Paris. But if someone does manage 97 00:06:27,360 --> 00:06:30,279 Speaker 1: to best her score, I bet she'll be among those 98 00:06:30,400 --> 00:06:34,479 Speaker 1: cheering the loudest, because, as the retired athlete and Hall 99 00:06:34,520 --> 00:06:38,200 Speaker 1: of Famer once said, quote, the glory of sports comes 100 00:06:38,240 --> 00:06:43,280 Speaker 1: from dedication, determination, and desire. Achieving success has less to 101 00:06:43,279 --> 00:06:46,080 Speaker 1: do with wins and losses than it does with learning 102 00:06:46,080 --> 00:06:48,520 Speaker 1: how to prepare yourself so that at the end of 103 00:06:48,600 --> 00:06:51,119 Speaker 1: the day there was nothing more you could have done 104 00:06:51,440 --> 00:06:59,360 Speaker 1: to reach your ultimate goal. I'm Gay Blues Gay, and 105 00:06:59,400 --> 00:07:02,760 Speaker 1: hopefully you now know a little more about history today 106 00:07:03,200 --> 00:07:06,160 Speaker 1: than you did yesterday. If you'd like to keep up 107 00:07:06,160 --> 00:07:08,880 Speaker 1: with the show, you can follow us on Twitter, Facebook, 108 00:07:08,960 --> 00:07:13,160 Speaker 1: and Instagram at TDI HC Show, and if you have 109 00:07:13,240 --> 00:07:16,120 Speaker 1: any comments or suggestions, feel free to send them my 110 00:07:16,200 --> 00:07:20,960 Speaker 1: way by writing to this Day at iHeartMedia dot com. 111 00:07:21,000 --> 00:07:24,080 Speaker 1: Thanks to kazb Bias for producing the show, and thanks 112 00:07:24,080 --> 00:07:26,440 Speaker 1: to you for listening. I'll see you back here again 113 00:07:26,520 --> 00:07:32,360 Speaker 1: tomorrow for another day in History class.