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Tom Pappas

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For the United States Army Colonel, see Thomas Pappas.
Tom Pappas
Tom Pappas in Eugene (2008)
Personal information
Nationality United States
Born (1976-09-06) September 6, 1976 (age 49)
Azalea, Oregon, USA
Height6 ft 5 in (196 cm)[1]
Weight216 lb (98 kg)[1]
Sport
SportAthletics
Event
Decathlon
College teamLane Titans (1995-96)
Tennessee Volunteers (1997, 1999)
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)Decathlon: 8,784 pts (2003)
Heptathlon: 6,361 pts (2003)
Medal record
Representing  United States
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2003 Paris Decathlon
World Indoor Championships
Gold medal – first place 2003 Birmingham Heptathlon

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

Early life

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Pappas was born in Azalea, Oregon. He graduated from Glendale High School in 1994, and from the University of Tennessee in 1999.[2]

Career

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Pappas is a four-time U.S. champion (2000, 2002, 2003, 2006) and was the 1999 NCAA champion while attending the University of Tennessee. Before his time at Tennessee, Pappas also competed in the Northwest Athletic Conference for the Lane Titans track and field team.[3] 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.[4]

He won the 2003 Jesse Owens Award from USATF, an award given to the Athlete of the Year.[5]

Pappas finished fifth at the 2000 Olympic decathlon.[6] 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.[7]

Post-career

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Pappas is the co-owner of Lane 5 Crossfit in Eugene, Oregon.[8]

Achievements

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Year Tournament Venue Result Event
1999 World Championships Seville DNF Decathlon
2000 Olympic Games Sydney 5th Decathlon
2001 Goodwill Games Brisbane 3rd Decathlon
2003 World Indoor Championships Birmingham 1st Heptathlon
World Championships Paris 1st Decathlon
2004 Hypo-Meeting Götzis 2nd Decathlon
Olympic Games Athens DNF Decathlon
2008 Olympic Games Beijing DNF Decathlon

Personal bests

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Outdoor

Individual events
Event Performance Location Date
Long jump 7.57 m (24 ft 10 in) Indianapolis July 7, 2000
High jump 2.10 m (6 ft 10+1⁄2 in) Knoxville April 10, 2004
100 meters 10.5h Indianapolis July 7, 2000
10.63 (+2.3 m/s) Knoxville April 25, 2004
10.90 (+1.9 m/s) Columbia April 13, 2006
400 meters 48.22 Knoxville May 1, 1999
110 meters hurdles 13.7h Indianapolis July 7, 2000
13.94 (+1.2 m/s) Athens, GA May 15, 1999
Pole vault 5.20 m (17 ft 1⁄2 in) Indianapolis July 7, 2000
Discus throw 51.61 m (169 ft 3+3⁄4 in) El Paso April 12, 2008
Javelin throw 66.12 m (216 ft 11 in) Knoxville April 15, 2000
Combined events
Event Performance Location Date Score
Decathlon N/a Palo Alto June 22, 2003 8,784 points
100 meters 10.65 (−0.2 m/s) Götzis May 31, 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) Sydney September 27, 2000 1,002 points
400 meters 47.58 Saint-Denis August 26, 2003 930 points
110 meters hurdles 13.90 (+0.3 m/s) Götzis May 30, 2004 987 points
Discus throw 51.57 m (169 ft 2+1⁄4 in) Marburg August 9, 2009 903 points
Pole vault 5.20 m (17 ft 1⁄2 in) Eugene June 30, 2008 972 points
Javelin throw 65.90 m (216 ft 2+1⁄4 in) Saint-Denis August 27, 2003 827 points
1500 meters 4:44.31 Saint-Denis August 27, 2003 653 points
Virtual Best Performance 9,193 points

Indoor

Individual events
Event Performance Location Date
800 meters 2:02.94 Manhattan, KS February 15, 2007
Mile 5:03.53 New Haven January 13, 2007
55 meters hurdles 7.27 Knoxville February 21, 2003
60 meters hurdles 7.92 Blacksburg January 16, 1999
Long jump 7.35 m (24 ft 1+1⁄4 in) Gainesville February 20, 1999
High jump 2.08 m (6 ft 9+3⁄4 in) Blacksburg February 6, 1999
Pole vault 5.18 m (16 ft 11+3⁄4 in) Lexington February 7, 2003
Shot put 16.83 m (55 ft 2+1⁄2 in) Manhattan, KS January 18, 2008
Combined events
Event Performance Location Date Score
Heptathlon N/a Birmingham March 15–16, 2003 6,361 points
60 meters 6.89 Birmingham March 15, 2003 922 points
Long jump 7.56 m (24 ft 9+1⁄2 in) Birmingham March 15, 2003 950 points
Shot put 16.23 m (53 ft 2+3⁄4 in) Birmingham March 15, 2003 865 points
High jump 2.21 m (7 ft 3 in) Athens, GA March 3, 2000 1,002 points
60 meters hurdles 7.80 Birmingham March 16, 2003 1,033 points
Pole vault 5.03 m (16 ft 6 in) Chapel Hill March 2, 2002 920 points
1000 meters 2:49.32 Chapel Hill March 7, 2004 773 points
Virtual Best Performance 6,465 points

References

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  1. ^ a b "Tom Pappas". espn.com. Retrieved October 16, 2025.
  2. ^ Weir, Tom (August 5, 2004). "Understated decathlete Pappas faces 10 the hard way". usatoday.com. Archived from the original on August 23, 2004.
  3. ^ "Track & Field Records - Men". Lane Titans. Retrieved 30 January 2025.
  4. ^ Crumpacker, John (June 23, 2003). "Explosive White steals 200 title". sfgate.com.
  5. ^ "USA Track & Field - Annual Awards - Jesse Owens Award". USA Track & Field. Archived from the original on 2013-11-03. Retrieved 2013-08-02.
  6. ^ Schnell, Lindsay (August 16, 2008). "Olympics not new for Pappas, just his outlook". knoxnews.com.
  7. ^ Goe, Ken (August 21, 2008). "Tom Pappas is out of the decathlon". oregonlive.com.
  8. ^ "MEET OUR TALENTED COACHES". lane5crossfit.com. Retrieved May 22, 2024.
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