 Powell announces at a press conference that he will attempt to break theWorld Masters record | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Michael Anthony Powell[1] |
| Born | (1963-11-10)November 10, 1963 (age 62)[1] Philadelphia,Pennsylvania, U.S.[1] |
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)[1] |
| Weight | 170 lb (77 kg)[1] |
| Sport | |
| Country |  United States |
| Sport | Track and field |
Event | Long jump |
| Coached by | Randy Huntington |
| Achievements and titles | |
| Personalbest |
|
Medal record | |
| Updated on August 6, 2012 | |
Michael Anthony Powell (born November 10, 1963) is an American formertrack and field athlete, the holder of thelong jumpworld record, and a two-time world champion as well as two-time Olympic silver medalist in the event. His world record of 8.95 m (29 ft4+1⁄4 in) was set on August 30, 1991.
Powell was born inPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania. He attendedEdgewood High School inWest Covina, California. In high school, he cleared a height of 7 feet (2.13 m) in thehigh jump at theCIF California State Meet in 1981.[2] He went to theUniversity of California, Irvine and transferred to theUniversity of California, Los Angeles. Since then, he is a member of theAlpha Phi Alpha fraternity.
Powell won the BritishAAA Championships title at the1987 AAA Championships.[3][4]
In 1988, Powell won the long jumpsilver medal at theOlympics inSeoul, South Korea.[1]
At the1991 World Championships in Athletics inTokyo, Japan, on August 30, 1991, Powell brokeBob Beamon's almost 23-year-old long jump world record by 5 cm (2 in), leaping 8.95 m (29 ft4+1⁄4 in).[5] The world record stands, making it thelongest-standing long jump world record since records have been kept. The feat earned him theJames E. Sullivan Award andBBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year Award in 1991.[citation needed]
He also holds the longestwind-assisted jump at 8.99 m (29 ft5+3⁄4 in) (+4.4 m/s), set athigh altitude in 1992 inSestriere, Italy.[6] He again won the long jump silver at the1992 Olympics inBarcelona, Spain.[1] At the1993 World Championships inStuttgart, Germany, he won the long jump for the second time,[7] and was third at the1995 World Championships inGothenburg, Sweden.
During his professional career, Powell competed in the 1992–93 Foot Locker Slam Fest trying to dunk from the free throw line but failed.Mike Conley made a dunk from the free throw line and won the competition.[citation needed] After placing fifth in the long jump at the1996 Olympics, Powell retired. He returned in 2001 with a goal of competing in the2004 Olympics, but was not able to make the American team.
Powell became an analyst forYahoo! Sports Olympic Track & Field coverage. In July 2009, he announced that he would return to competition and planned to breakTapani Taavitsainen's Masters over-45 world record in the long jump.[8]
At the Simplot Games inPocatello, Idaho on February 20, 2015, in an official announcement Powell said that he would jump again in competition. On March 7, 2015, Powell entered the Athletics New Zealand Track and Field Championships inWellington, New Zealand in an attempt to break the World Masters record. However, Powell sustained an injury in warm-ups and did not compete.[citation needed]
In July 2016, his daughterMicha Powell was named as an alternate toCanada's Olympic team for the Summer Olympic Games inRio de Janeiro, Brazil.[9] Her mother,Rosey Edeh, ran in the 400 meters hurdles final at the1996 Olympics.
Powell had coached long jump at theAzusa Pacific University inCalifornia during the 2023 season.[10] However, in 2025 he was suspended indefinitely by the Athletics Integrity Unit after a safeguarding concern, and is barred from all activities sanctioned byWorld Athletics.[11]
| Records | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Men's Long Jump World Record Holder August 30, 1991 – present | Incumbent |
| Achievements | ||
| Preceded by | Men's Long Jump Best Year Performance 1990–1991 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Men's Long Jump Best Year Performance 1993 | Succeeded by |
| Awards | ||
| Preceded by | BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year 1991 | Succeeded by |
|
World University Games champions in men'slong jump | |
|---|---|
|
| Qualification |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Men's track and road athletes |
| |
| Men's field athletes |
| |
| Women's track and road athletes |
| |
| Women's field athletes | ||
| Coaches |
| |
| Qualification | | |
|---|---|---|
| Men's track and road athletes |
| |
| Men's field athletes |
| |
| Women's track and road athletes |
| |
| Women's field athletes | ||
| Coaches |
| |
| Qualification | | |
|---|---|---|
| Men's track and road athletes |
| |
| Men's field athletes |
| |
| Women's track and road athletes |
| |
| Women's field athletes | ||
| Coaches | — | |
