Tom Pappas

For the United States Army Colonel, see Thomas Pappas.
Tom Pappas

Tom Pappas
Medal record
Men's athletics
Representing  United States
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2003 Paris Decathlon
World Indoor Championships
Gold medal – first place 2003 Birmingham Heptathlon

Tom Pappas (born September 6, 1976) is an American decathlete.

Early life

Pappas was born in Azalea, Oregon. He graduated from Glendale High School in 1994, and from the University of Tennessee in 1999.[1]

Career

Pappas is a four-time U.S. champion (2000, 2002, 2003, 2006) and was the 1999 NCAA champion while attending the University of Tennessee. He won the gold medal at the 2003 World Championships and was rated number 1 in the world that year by Track & Field News. His personal best in the decathlon is 8,784 points while winning the 2003 US Championships held at Stanford University.[2]

He won the 2003 Jesse Owens Award from USATF, signifying he was Athlete of the Year.[3]

Pappas finished fifth at the 2000 Olympic decathlon.[4] He placed third in the decathlon at the 2008 United States Olympic trials (track and field) in Eugene, Oregon, but was unable to complete the decathlon in Beijing due to a plantar fasciitis injury.[5]

Post-career

Pappas is the co-owner of Lane 5 Crossfit in Eugene, Oregon.[6]

Achievements

Tournament Venue Result Extra
1999 World Championships Seville, Spain DNF Decathlon
2000 Olympic Games Sydney, Australia 5th Decathlon
2001 Goodwill Games Brisbane, Australia 3rd Decathlon
2003 World Indoor Championships Birmingham, England 1st Heptathlon
World Championships Paris, France 1st Decathlon
2004 Hypo-Meeting Götzis, Austria 2nd Decathlon
Olympic Games Athens, Greece DNF Decathlon
2008 Olympic Games Beijing, PR China DNF Decathlon

Personal Bests

As of May 22, 2024
Event Performance Location Date Points
Decathlon 8,784 points Palo Alto June 22, 2003 8,784 points
100 meters 10.65 (-0.2 m/s) Götzis June 6, 2003 940 points
Long jump 7.96 m (26 ft 1+1⁄4 in) (+1.4 m/s) Palo Alto June 21, 2003 1,050 points
Shot put 17.26 m (56 ft 7+1⁄2 in) Eugene June 29, 2008 929 points
High jump 2.21 m (7 ft 3 in) Götzis September 27, 2000 1,002 points
400 meters 47.58 Paris Saint-Denis August 26, 2003 930 points
110 meters hurdles 13.90 (+0.3 m/s) Götzis August 6, 1997 987 points
Discus throw 52.18 m (171 ft 2+1⁄4 in) El Paso January 1, 2003 916 points
Pole vault 5.20 m (17 ft 1⁄2 in) Götzis May 30, 2004 972 points
Javelin throw 66.56 m (218 ft 4+1⁄4 in) Sarasota June 9, 2000 837 points
1500 meters 4:35.14 January 1, 1995 711 points
Virtual Best Performance 9,274 points

References

  1. ^ Weir, Tom (August 5, 2004). "Understated decathlete Pappas faces 10 the hard way". usatoday.com. Archived from the original on August 23, 2004.
  2. ^ Crumpacker, John (June 23, 2003). "Explosive White steals 200 title". sfgate.com.
  3. ^ "USA Track & Field - Annual Awards - Jesse Owens Award". Usatf.org. Retrieved 2013-08-02.
  4. ^ Schnell, Lindsay (August 16, 2008). "Olympics not new for Pappas, just his outlook". knoxnews.com.
  5. ^ Goe, Ken (August 21, 2008). "Tom Pappas is out of the decathlon". oregonlive.com.
  6. ^ "MEET OUR TALENTED COACHES". lane5crossfit.com. Retrieved May 22, 2024.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tom Pappas.
Awards
Preceded by Men's Track & Field ESPY Award
2004 		Succeeded by
No Award Given