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James Beckford

James Beckford (2012)
Medal record
Men's athletics
Representing  Jamaica
Olympic Games
	1996 Atlanta	Long jump
World Championships
	1995 Gothenburg	Long jump
	2003 Paris	Long jump
World Indoor Championships
	2004 Budapest	Long jump

James Beckford (born 9 January 1975 in Saint Mary, Jamaica) is a Jamaican track and field athlete competing in the long jump. He represented Jamaica at the Olympic level in 1996, 2000 and 2004. He was the silver medallist in the long jump at the 1996 Olympics and also has two silvers from the World Championships in Athletics (from 1995 and 2003). He was chosen as the Jamaica Sportsman of the Year for 1995, 1996 and 2003. He is the current holder of the Jamaican record for the triple jump with a mark of 17.92 m, and was also the holder of the long jump record at 8.62m until 28 September. 2019 when it was replaced with a mark of 8.69 m by Tajay Gayle at the World Championships in Athletics in Doha, Qatar.

Beckford was educated in the United States and began his athletics career there, specialising in the horizontal jumps. He took the triple jump title at Florida's Class AAAA championship, representing William R. Boone High School. He moved to Texas to study at Blinn College. While there he improved Delroy Poyser's Jamaican record with a jump of 17.29 metres (56 ft 8¾ in) – a mark which was also the world-leading outdoor jump at that point in April 1994.

His personal best of 8.62 m (28 ft 3+1⁄4 in) is currently ranked 15th on the all-time list. Since he made that jump, 5 April 1997 in Orlando, Florida, only 6 men have jumped farther.

He was banned from competition for three months in 1997 after he failed a drug test for ephedrine, a banned stimulant.

He has competed at the World Championships on five occasions and the IAAF World Indoor Championships on six occasions. Aside from his global performances, he has won medals at the Summer Universiade, the Goodwill Games, the IAAF Grand Prix Final, as well as a silver medal from the 1998 CAC Games.

He remains active, winning the 2018 World Masters Championships.

Achievements

See also

• List of sportspeople sanctioned for doping offences

References

1. "Beckford triple jump national record turns 25". jamaica-star.com. 20 May 2020. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
2. Buchalter, Bill (5 April 1994). Beckford Jumps To World Lead. Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved on 2010-09-02.
3. Longman, Jere (1 August 1997). "I.A.A.F. Reduces Doping Bans". The New York Times. Retrieved 8 May 2010.

• James Beckford at World Athletics

Sporting positions
Preceded by Iván Pedroso	Men's Long Jump Best Year Performance 1998	Succeeded by Iván Pedroso

• 1975 births
• Living people
• Sportspeople from Saint Mary Parish, Jamaica
• Jamaican male long jumpers
• Jamaican male triple jumpers
• Olympic athletes for Jamaica
• Athletes (track and field) at the 1996 Summer Olympics
• Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Olympics
• Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics
• Olympic silver medalists for Jamaica
• Doping cases in athletics
• Blinn College alumni
• Jamaican sportspeople in doping cases
• World Athletics Championships medalists
• Junior college men's track and field athletes in the United States
• Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics
• Olympic silver medalists in athletics (track and field)
• Universiade medalists in athletics (track and field)
• Goodwill Games medalists in athletics
• Central American and Caribbean Games silver medalists for Jamaica
• Competitors at the 1998 Central American and Caribbean Games
• FISU World University Games silver medalists for Jamaica
• Central American and Caribbean Games medalists in athletics
• Medalists at the 1997 Summer Universiade
• Competitors at the 1998 Goodwill Games
• Competitors at the 2001 Goodwill Games
• Goodwill Games gold medalists in athletics
• Jamaican Athletics Championships winners