SMU’s Connor Bounds To Triple Jump Greatness
It’s been 38 years and still no one has broken the meet record Keith Connor of SMU set in the triple jump at the 1982 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Provo, Utah. The only field event meet record that is older was achieved with an implement no longer in use.
Connor’s high-altitude mark – 17.57m (57-7¾) – broke the previous meet record by more than a foot and was the second-longest ever in the world at the time. He won the meet by a then-record margin of 76 centimeters (2-5¾”) and also notched the eighth best performance in world history of 17.29m (56-8¾).
It wasn’t the first NCAA title for Connor, a British native born in Caribbean islands of Anguilla. His previous absolute best came a year earlier when he claimed the NCAA Indoor title with a world indoor best of 17.31m (56-9½).
“I thought I could jump 57-5,” Connor said in the interview tent afterwards. “But now that I’ve hit a big jump, I want to improve my consistency. I’m reaching a good plateau in my progress. I’m sorting myself out now; I’m not record hungry. Last year I did well early indoors and then I peaked out and had a bad outdoor season. This year I’m not hitting a peak early. I’m working through the outdoor season.”
Connor repeated as NCAA Outdoor champion in 1983 with a jump of 17.26m (56-7½) – which was the best in meet history at low altitude – over Al Joyner (Arkansas State) and Michael Conley (Arkansas), a talented duo that would be Olympic gold and silver medalists in 1984.
Those first-place points Connor earned in 1983, which would be his final time competing in an SMU uniform, buoyed the Mustangs to their first of two national crowns in track & field. SMU topped Tennessee by two points, in what would be the closest 1-2 finish for the men’s team title in meet history since 1968.
The NCAA and collegiate track & field will mark a momentous milestone in the spring of 2021 -- the 100th anniversary of the NCAA Championships and with that, the NCAA Track & Field Championships. In June 1921, the University of Chicago hosted the first track & field championships in NCAA history.
This point can’t be emphasized enough: Not only was the event the first for NCAA track & field, but the first championships for any sport under the sponsorship of the NCAA.
To celebrate, over each of the next 365 days, the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) will celebrate moments, student-athletes, and coaches that have made a century’s worth of championships special. From humble beginnings to important historical milestones to the modern-day, collegiate track & field has evolved with the American society.
The 2021 edition of the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships begin with preliminary round action on May 27-29 in Jacksonville, Fla., and College Station, Texas. The championships final site and culmination of the celebration is slated for June 9-12, 2021 at the newly rebuilt Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.
Cal’s Hudson Wins Epic Triple Jump With World’s Best
On this day in 1987, Sheila Hudson of California set world best in Women’s Triple Jump at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships when she bounded 13.78m (45-2½).
Track. Field. Houston’s Lewis Does It All!
On this day in 1981, Carl Lewis of Houston became the first athlete since Jesse Owens to win a track event and field event at the same NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
UCLA Men’s 4×400 Clocks NCAA’s First Sub-3
On this day in 1988, the UCLA men’s 4×400 relay team became the first collegiate quartet to break three minutes, clocking 2:59.91 with Steve Lewis, Kevin Young, Danny Everett and Henry Thomas.
LSU’s Sowell Dominates 1989 NCAA Championships
On this day in 1989, Dawn Sowell of LSU culminated one of the most dominant performances in the history of the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
Givens’ Quad Leads Florida State to Team Title
On this day in 1984, Randy Givens of Florida State completed a remarkable – and still, unmatched – feat, winning a quadruple set of titles at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Eugene, Ore.
Rono Rolls Into The Record Books
On this day in 1978, Henry Rono of Washington State became the first (and still only) man to set two different NCAA Championships meet records in distance races on the same day.
Jackie Joyner Doubles Down On Multi Crowns
On this day in 1983, Jackie Joyner of UCLA became the first woman to win an event twice at the NCAA Championships, claiming her second consecutive crown in the heptathlon with a then-collegiate-record-setting score of 6390 points.
Connect Four: Prefontaine Makes History
Steve Prefontaine of Oregon became the first athlete to win titles in the same outdoor event four times, claiming the 3-mile/5000m from 1970-73.
Ralph Metcalfe Is Mr. Triple-Double
Ralph Metcalfe, who was born on this day (May 29) in 1910, won three consecutive 100 and 200 titles while at Marquette from 1932-34, becoming the first athlete to win three NCAA titles in two separate events.
Georgia’s Orji Jump-Starts Record-Breaking Career
On this day in 2016, Keturah Orji of Georgia set her first collegiate record in the triple jump of 14.29m (46-10¾) at the NCAA Division I East Preliminary Round in Jacksonville, Florida.