Last updated January 2007
Category: Factual
& Arts TV; Sport
Printable version
The second most famous thing about Jonathan Edwards is
his Christian faith.
However, as a young athlete he attracted our attention
for refusing to compete on Sundays and foregoing the opportunity to
compete in the World Championships in 1991.
In 1993 he compromised and
decided to use his God-given talent to its full potential.
As one of the regular presenters on BBC ONE's long-running
series Songs Of Praise, Jonathan is once again achieving fame for his
religious commitments.
He's also presented a documentary on one of his own
New Testament heroes, St Paul.
His other media commitments include commentating for
BBC Sport and a regular column in The Times.
Jonathan is best known as king of the triple jump. He
was English schools champion in 1984 and competed at the Seoul Olympics
in 1988 and Barcelona Olympics in 1992.
He first made the record books in 1995 when he smashed
the triple jump world record at the World Championships in Gothenburg
with an amazing jump of 18.29m - to date no one has even come close
to this distance.
There are few triple jumping titles Jonathan hasn't
won. However, it was only at the Sydney Olympics in 2000 that he finally
achieved his ultimate dream of an Olympic gold medal. He captured the
nation's heart and returned home to a hero's welcome.
In 2002 Jonathan won Commonwealth Gold at Manchester
and became one of only four elite athletes to have held all four major
world titles at the same time - Olympic, World, European and Commonwealth.
A glittering career on track has been matched by his
accolades off track, including BBC Sports Personality of the Year (1995),
the IAFF's Athlete of the Year (1995) and a CBE in the New Years Honours
List (2000).
Jonathan was born in London in 1966. He's married to
Alison and they have two sons.
He retired from competitive athletics in 2002 and now
concentrates on his media work, corporate commitments and motivational
speaking.
After a long and high profile athletic career, 2003 saw the emergence of Jonathan on to our TV screens. Jonathan has since become one of the key pundits and commentators for BBC Sport covering major athletics events including the 2004 Athens Olympics and the 2006 Commonwealth Games.
He was appointed to Ofcom in 2004.
