Donald Thomas (athlete)

Donald Thomas

Donald Thomas celebrating in Osaka 2007
Personal information
Nationality	Bahamian
Born	10 July 1984 Freeport, Bahamas
Height	1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)[1]
Weight	81 kg (179 lb)
Sport
Sport	Track and field
Event(s)	High jump
College team	Auburn Tigers
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)	2.37 m[2][3]
Medal record Men's athletics Representing the  Bahamas World Championships 2007 Osaka High jump Commonwealth Games 2010 Delhi High jump Pan American Games 2011 Guadalajara High jump 2007 Rio de Janeiro High jump CAC Games 2010 Mayaguez High Jump Continental Cup 2010 Split High jump

Donald Thomas (born 1 July 1984) is a Bahamian high jumper from Freeport, Bahamas.

Biography

Thomas took up high jump in January 2006 while studying at Lindenwood University in Saint Charles, Missouri, where he played on the University's basketball team.^[4] He tried high jump for the first time when challenged by members of the track and field team, who were reacting to his claims about his ability to slam dunk. Thomas cleared 6'6" (1.98 m) on his first attempt and 7' (2.13 m) on his third ever jump. The athletes then sought the head track coach Lane Lohr, who entered Thomas in a meet two days later at Eastern Illinois University. At the meet he cleared 7'3.25" (2.22 m), on his seventh-ever jump.^[5][6]

In March 2006, Thomas placed second at the 2006 NAIA Indoor Track & Field National Championships with a height of 7'1.75" (2.18 m).^[7] Later that month, just two months after taking up high jump, he finished fourth at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne with a jump of 2.23 m. Not yet experienced at high jump, Thomas gained notoriety at the Commonwealth Games for not measuring his run-up, competing in shoes without spikes, and putting his arms behind his back to land on the mat as if breaking his fall.^[5][8][9]

During the 2007 indoor season he cleared 2.30 metres for the first time and in March jumped 2.33 metres in Fayetteville, Arkansas.^[10] In July 2007 he cleared 2.35 metres in Salamanca, Spain. The result was a new personal best and the world season's best at the time.^[4][11] He then won the 2007 World Championships in Osaka, Japan, again with a 2.35 jump. He also won gold at the 2007 IAAF World Athletics Final.^[12] That year he also won the IAAF Newcomer of the Year, and the Bahamas Amateur Athletic Association Athlete of the Year.^[13]

The Olympics in 2008, however, turned out a major disappointment for Thomas. He made only 2.20 in the qualifying round and finished 21st overall.^[14]

Thomas won the gold medal in the high jump at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, India. In the final he was the only competitor to clear the height of 2.32, which he managed at the first attempt. The silver medal in the event was won by his countryman Trevor Barry. In 2011 he won the gold medal in the high jump at the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico, again with a height of 2.32.

Thomas competed in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, United Kingdom. In qualification he cleared 2.16, passed on 2.21, then failed to clear 2.26 and did not advance to the final.

Thomas represented the Bahamas at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.^[1] He made the final for the first time at an Olympic competition and finished in equal 7th place with a jump of 2.29.^[3][15]

Competition record

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Notes
Representing  Bahamas
2006	Commonwealth Games	Melbourne, Australia	4th	2.23 m
	NACAC U23 Championships	Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic	2nd	2.21 m
	Central American and Caribbean Games	Cartagena, Colombia	4th	2.13 m
2007	Pan American Games	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	2nd	2.30 m
	World Championships	Osaka, Japan	1st	2.35 m
2008	Olympic Games	Beijing, China	21st (q)	2.20 m
2009	World Championships	Berlin, Germany	15th (q)	2.27 m
2010	World Indoor Championships	Doha, Qatar	15th (q)	2.18 m
	Central American and Caribbean Games	Mayagüez, Puerto Rico	1st	2.28 m
	Commonwealth Games	Delhi, India	1st	2.32 m
2011	World Championships	Daegu, South Korea	11th	2.20 m
	Pan American Games	Guadalajara, Mexico	1st	2.32 m
2012	World Indoor Championships	Istanbul, Turkey	15th (q)	2.22 m
	Olympic Games	London, United Kingdom	30th (q)	2.16 m
2013	Central American and Caribbean Championships	Morelia, Mexico	–	NM
	World Championships	Moscow, Russia	6th	2.32 m
2014	World Indoor Championships	Sopot, Poland	–	NM
	Commonwealth Games	Glasgow, United Kingdom	9th	2.21 m
2015	Pan American Games	Toronto, Canada	3rd	2.28 m
	World Championships	Beijing, China	6th	2.29 m
2016	World Indoor Championships	Portland, United States	10th	2.25 m
	Olympic Games	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	7th	2.29 m

References

1. "Donald Thomas - athlete profile". rio2016.com. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
2. "Gyulai István Memorial" (PDF). all-athletics.com. Retrieved 2016-08-18.
3. "Former Tiger Donald Thomas qualifies for Olympic high jump finals". auburntigers.com. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
4. Valiente, Emeterio (2007-07-05). "2.35 World lead for Donald Thomas in Salamanca". IAAF.org. Retrieved 2007-07-05.
5. Epstein, David (2013). The Sports Gene: Inside the Science of Extraordinary Athletic Performance. Current. ISBN 978-1-59184-511-9.
6. "Donald Thomas is revelation of the year". iaaf.org. Retrieved 2016-08-18.
7. "2006 Indoor Track & Field National Championships Results". naia.org. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
8. "Donald Thomas (Bahamas) in first major competition clears 2.20m wearing only warm-up training shoes opposed to athletes spikes, Men's High Jump, 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games". gettyimages.ca. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
9. "Lindenwood's Thomas Competes at Commonwealth Games". naia.org. Retrieved 2016-08-17.
10. Dunaway, James (2007-03-11). "Thomas clears 2.33m, as Hastings blazes women's 400 in 50.80 - NCAA Indoor Champs, Day 2". IAAF.org. Retrieved 2007-07-05.
11. "IAAF Top Lists High Jump 2007 (men)".
12. Bahamian Thomas wins high jump gold on YouTube
13. "Commonwealth Games Biography - Donald Thomas". 8 August 2014. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
14. "Donald Thomas Bio, Stats, and Results". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
15. "Men's High Jump - Standings". rio2016.com. Retrieved 2016-08-17.

External links

• Donald Thomas profile at IAAF
• Auburn Tigers bio
• 2006 Commonwealth Games profile