Mike Conley Sr.

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Mike Conley
Personal information
Full nameMichael Alexander Conley Sr.
NationalityAmerican
Born (1962-10-05) October 5, 1962 (age 61)
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Height6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight170 lb (77 kg)
Sport
SportTrack and field
EventTriple jump
College teamArkansas Razorbacks
Updated on May 5, 2012.

Michael Alexander Conley Sr. (born October 5, 1962) is an American former track and field athlete who competed primarily in the triple jump and the long jump.[1][2] In the triple jump, he won an Olympic gold medal in 1992, silver in 1984, and gold in the 1993 World Championship.[3]

Conley's son, Mike Conley Jr., is a professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Competitive career[edit]

Conley competed collegiately at the University of Arkansas where he won 9 NCAA long jump and triple jump titles. Conley was ranked #1 in the United States 9 times in the triple jump during his professional career. Conley is the former world indoor triple jump record holder and he still holds the U.S. indoor record in the triple jump at 17.76 meters (58 feet, 3.25 inches).

Conley was ranked #1 in the world 6 times in the Triple Jump during his career and was ranked 8th in the U.S. in the 200 meter dash in 1985. Conley received the USATF Jim Thorpe Award in 1986 and 1992 as the top field events athlete in the U.S.[4] In 2004, Conley was inducted into the United States National Track and Field Hall of Fame.[5]

A 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) basketball player at the point guard position in Luther High School South in Chicago and in college (only during his freshman year),[6] Conley relied on those skills in winning the Foot Locker Celebrity Slam Dunk Contest in 1988, 1989 and 1992, where he also made the longest dunk ever, a dunk from 2" behind the free-throw line in the final against Olympic long jumper, Mike Powell.[7]

Post-competitive career[edit]

Conley was president and remains on the board of directors of World Sport Chicago,[8] the "living legacy" of Chicago's 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Bid, that focuses on promoting and developing sport programs and events for the youth of Chicago. Chicago had been selected as the U.S. entry into the bid process. Previously, he was the executive director of Elite Athlete's program for USA Track and Field.[9]

Conley is presently serving as chairman on the High Performance committee for USATF.

Conley is also CEO of (MMG) a Sports Management Group as well as CEO of hydrogen-infused water company HTWO.[10]

Conley is registered with the NBA as an agent and represented his son, Mike Conley Jr., and his son's Ohio State teammates Greg Oden and Daequan Cook when they entered the league and currently represents fellow University of Arkansas alum Isaiah Joe of the Oklahoma City Thunder.[11] Oden officially declared for the NBA draft by signing with Mike Sr. as his agent and was subsequently chosen as the number one player in the 2007 NBA draft. Conley Jr. was selected fourth overall. Cook was drafted 21st.[12]

Rankings[edit]

Conley had a particularly long and prolific career and he was considered among the world's best for over a decade. Track and Field News ranked him among the top ten triple jumpers in the world 14 consecutive years (six times as world's best) and seven times in the long jump.[13][14]

Conley was ranked 8th in the U.S. in the 200 meter dash in 1985.

Year TJ world rank TJ U.S. rank LJ world rank LJ U.S. rank
1982 5th 6th
1983 4th 2nd 4th 4th
1984 1st 1st 5th
1985 2nd 2nd 2nd 2nd
1986 1st 1st 4th 3rd
1987 2nd 1st 7th 4th
1988 5th 1st 5th
1989 1st 1st 5th 4th
1990 3rd 2nd
1991 3rd 2nd
1992 1st 1st 8th 6th
1993 1st 1st 8th
1994 1st 1st
1995 9th 1st
1996 4th 2nd 8th 6th

Personal life[edit]

Conley is married to René Corbin Conley and is the father of Minnesota Timberwolves point guard Mike Conley Jr., Jordan Conley, Sydney Conley (All-American long jumper at the University of Kansas), and Jon Conley. He is the elder brother of former American football linebacker Steve Conley.

References[edit]

  1. ^ "IAAF: Mike CONLEY | Profile". iaaf.org. Retrieved August 3, 2018.
  2. ^ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Mike Conley". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on December 3, 2016. Full name: Michael Alexander "Mike" Conley
  3. ^ "Mike CONLEY – Olympic Athletics | United States of America". Olympic.org. International Olympic Committee. June 14, 2016. Retrieved August 3, 2018.
  4. ^ [1] Archived December 8, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ "Hall of Fame". USATF.org. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  6. ^ "Chicago | Chicago : News : Politics : Things To Do : Sports". Suntimes.com. Archived from the original on January 3, 2008. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  7. ^ "When You Accidentally Break A World Record". youtube.com. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
  8. ^ [2] Archived March 14, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  9. ^ "InterMat Wrestling". Intermatwrestle.com. Archived from the original on May 28, 2015. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  10. ^ Sheffield, Michael (October 23, 2015). "New energy drink gets its own boost from Conleys". www.bizjournals.com. Memphis Business Journal. Retrieved June 14, 2021.
  11. ^ "Agent Client Lists". RealGM.com.
  12. ^ [3] Archived April 23, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  13. ^ "History of Olympic Results: Triple Jump – Men – Track & Field News". Track & Field News. Retrieved August 3, 2018.
  14. ^ [4] Archived May 16, 2008, at the Wayback Machine

External links[edit]