Christian Taylor

Taylor, who has Barbadian ancestry and is from Fayetteville, Georgia, studied at the Our Lady of Victory Catholic School in Tyrone, Georgia, where he recognized his talent for triple jumping. He also attended Robert J. Burch Elementary School, where he entered the running club, as part of his early schooling. He joined the football and track and field teams as he transferred to Sandy Creek High School.

He established state records in the 400-meter dash, triple jump, and long jump while still being in high school. His accomplishments went on to soar when he claimed three titles in these disciplines at the National Scholastic Indoor Championships in 2008. He started making a name for himself on the global scene even as a high school student. Christian Taylor won the long jump bronze medal and the triple jump gold medal at the World Youth Athletics Championships in 2007. At the World Junior Athletic Championships in 2008, he reached the finals in both events.

In 2009, Taylor enrolled at the University of Florida, where he was recruited by coach Rana Reider. He won three championships at the Southeastern Conference Indoor Championships during his first year in the long jump, triple jump, and the 4×400-meter relay. Taylor proved his brilliance as an American triple jumper in March 2010 with a stunning 17.18 m clearance, making him the best performance in the nation that year. Outside of college competitions, he also claimed victory in triple and long jump events at the 2010 NACAC Under-23 Championships.

With a personal best of 17.68 m at the London Grand Prix, Taylor surpassed everyone else, including the current world champion Phillips Idowu, proving his talent. With a personal best of 17.96 meters, he defeated champion athlete Phillips Idowu once again to win the triple jump event at the World Championships in Daegu, South Korea in 2011. Taylor claimed the gold medal and cemented his reputation as a top athlete with his fourth leap in the London Olympics 2012, which totaled 17.81 m.

Taylor outperformed Pedro Pichardo at the World Championships in Beijing in 2015 with an incredible 18.21 m jump, the second-longest jump in history. His first effort of 17.86 m in Rio de Janeiro helped him to defend his title at the Rio Olympics 2016. Unfortunately, Taylor was unable to compete for a third straight Olympic gold medal at the Tokyo 2020 Games due to an Achilles injury.

Christian Taylor was born on June 18, 1990, in Fayetteville, Georgia in the United States. Taylor got engaged to Austrian hurdler Beate Schrott in April 2019. The couple married in 2021 in Austria, at Schloss Gurhof, and some weeks later in Jacksonville.