Benjamin Hochman | Post-Dispatch
Sports columnist
In today’s 10 a.m. video, columnist Ben Hochman tells a story you’ve never heard about Jackie Joyner-Kersee and something so cool she did in St. Louis. And, as always, Hochman picks a random St. Louis Cards card out of the hat.
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1980: Lincoln High
Jackie Joyner, left, joined the Post-Dispatch All-Metro basketball team in 1980 along with Mary Noel Brueggestrass of St. Joseph's, Barbara Gilmore of Lincoln, Roslyn Bartley of University City and Kim Brombolich of Collinsville. (Robert Holt/Post-Dispatch)
1983: UCLA
Jackie Joyner of UCLA breaks ground with a long jump of 21 feet 3/4 inches during the second day of the heptathlon at the NCAA Championship meet at Houston, Texas, Tuesday, May 31, 1983. Joyner continued to lead the event. (AP Photo)
1983: UCLA
Jackie Joyner of UCLA is shown during the 800-meter run of the heptathlon event at the NCAA Championship meet at Houston, Texas, Tuesday, May 31, 1983. Joyner won the event to become the new champion of the heptathlon. (AP Photo)
1987: Words of Comfort From Coach Husband
Heptathlon winner Jackie Joyner-Kersee, left, gets comfort from her coach-husband Bob Kersee after a poor performance in the javelin which prevented her from a world record in the heptathlon during the USA-Mobil Outdoor Track and Field Championships in San Jose, Calif., Wednesday afternoon, June 25, 1987. She still produced the third-highest point total in Heptathlon history with 6,979 points. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)
1988: Gold medal
Jackie Joyner-Kersee leaps during the women's long jump competition of the Olympic games in Seoul, in this Sept. 29, 1988 photo. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Jackie Joyner-Kersee of East St. Louis leaps during her gold-medal performance in the long jump competition at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea. She also won gold in the heptathlon that year.
1988: Jackie Does It Again
Jackie Joyner-Kersee of East St. Louis, Ill., waves an American sign, with help from her husband coach Bob Kersee, after winning the long jump in Seoul Thursday, September 29, 1988. Her 7.4 meter jump broke the old Olympic record she set earlier in the week. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)
1988: Jackie Joyner-Kersee
Womens heptathlon world-record holder Jackie Joyner-Kersee of East St. Louis, Ill., puts a big effort into her shot put toss in that phase of the heptathlon competition in Seoul Friday, Sept. 23, 1988. (AP Photo/Lennox McLendon)
1988: Jackie Joyner-Kersee
Jackie Joyner-Kersee of East St.Louis, Ill., clears the bar in the high jump portion of the heptathlon in Seoul, Friday, September 23, 1988. Earlier in the day she had set a new World record in the 100 meter high hurdles, the first of the heptathlon events. (AP Photo/Ronald Kennedy)
1988: Jackie Joyner-Kersee
Jackie Joyner-Kersee of East St. Louis, Ill., makes her javelin throw during heptathlon competition at the Seoul Olympics, Saturday. September 24, 1988. Joyner-Kersee's 7,291 points won her gold medal in the event while breaking her own world record of 7,215 points. (AP Photo/Lennox McLendon)
1988: Second Gold
Jackie Joyner-Kersee proudly waves her second gold medal of the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul Korea, Thursday, September 29, 1988, after taking the first with a convincing win in the women's long jump in Seoul. (AP Photo/Lennox Mclendon)
1992: Gold medal
Jackie Joyner-Kersee waves during medal ceremonies for the women's heptathlon at the Olympic Games in Barcelona, in this August 3, 1992 photo. Joyner-Kersee received the gold in the event. (AP Photo/Deither Endlicher)
1992: Heike Drechsler
Germany's Heike Drechsler, left, and USA's Jackie Joyner-Kersee of Canoga Park, Calif. walk arm in arm after they won the gold and Bronze, respectively, in the women's long jump at the Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Aug. 7, 1992. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)
1992: Heptathlon
Jackie Joyner-Kersee makes her first throw during the javelin portion of the women's heptathlon at the Olympic Games in Barcelona, in this Aug. 2, 1992 photo. (AP Photo/ Eric Risberg)
1992: Jackie Joyner-Kersee
USA’s Jackie Joyner-Kersee runs with an American flag after winning the gold in the women’s heptathlon at the Olympic Games in Barcelona on Sunday, August 2, 1992. (AP Photo/David Longstreath)
1992: Jackie Waves the Flag
Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Canoga Park, Calif., stands under the Olympic flame and waves the U.S. flag, after taking the Gold Medal in the Heptathlon at Barcelona's Olympic Stadium Sunday, August 2, 1992. (AP Photo/Eric Risber)
1992: Victory Hug
The USA's Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Canoga Park, Calif., gives her husband and coach, Bob Kersee, a hug Sunday night, August 2, 1992, in Olympic Stadium in Barcelona after winning the gold medal in the Heptathlon competition during the XXV Summer Olympic Games. (AP Photo/Denis Paquin)
1993: Lincoln
1993 file photo. Jackie Joyner Kersee visits students at East St. Louis Lincoln Senior High School.
1998: Goodwill Games
Jackie Joyner-Kersee (L) of the US pulls ahead of Kelly Blair-Labounty of the US during the 100 meter hurdles heptathlon 21 July at the 1998 Goodwill Games. Joyner-Kersee finished third in the event with a time of 13.29 seconds. AFP PHOTO/Don EMMERT
1998: GOODWILL GAMES
Jackie Joyner-Kersee smiles as she talks about her pending retirement at a news conference, Monday, July 20, 1998, at the Mitchel Athletic Complex in Uniondale, N.Y., during the 1998 Goodwill Games. Joyner-Kersee said she will compete in the heptathalon, which begins Tuesday.(AP Photo/Kathy Willens) (JJK: The energizer. )
1998: JACKIES FAREWELL
USA's Jackie Joyner-Kersee reacts after winning a gold medal in the heptathlon during the 1998 Goodwill Games, Wednesday, July 22, 1998, at Mitchell Athletic Complex in Uniondale, N.Y. Joyner-Kersee plans to retire from regular competition following a July 24th appearance in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)
President Bill Clinton visits East St. Louis
President Bill Clinton embraces Jackie Joyner-Kersee on July 6, 1999, on the podium in the parking lot of East St.Louis' State Street Walgreens, one of the city's newest businesses. The president spoke to several hundred of the area's residents Tuesday on a tour of the country's more economically challanged communities. (Photo: RICH GLICKSTEIN / POST-DISPATCH)
1999: JOYNER-KERSEE
6/16/ 99 Weds: Olympic gold medalist Jackie Joyner-Kersee exhorts East St. Louis schoolkids to wave to Illinois Gov. George Ryan as he boards a helicopter to head back to the capitol. During his visit, Gov. Ryan presented Joyner-Kersee with a check for $800,000, to be used for construction of the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Boys & Girls Club at the intersection of I-64 and 25th St. in East St. Louis, Ill. PHOTO BY KIRK WAGNER
2000: JOYNER KERSEE CENTER
Olympic gold-medal winner Jackie Joyner-Kersee, left, shares a laugh with track's Valerie Briscoe, tennis player Zena Garrison and track star Gail Devers during a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Boys and Girls Club in East St. Louis, Ill., Wednesday, March 1, 2000.(AP Photo/Mary Butkus, ho)
2001: COLLEGE HONOR
Olympic gold medalist Jackie Joyner-Kersee holds the Honda-Broderick cup, honoring her as the top female college athlete of the past 25 years, Monday April 23, 2001 in New York. (AP Photo/Stephen Chernin)
2001: Jackie Joyner-Kersee
Thursday, November 8, 2001-Jackie Joyner-Kersee speaks about her experiences as an athlete with asthma to students from East St. Louis Senior High and Lincoln Middle School. Joyner-Kersee started her national asthma tour at the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Center on Thursday in East St. Louis. More that 100 high school and middle school athletes were screened for asthma during the event.-PHOTO BY ODELL MITCHELL JR./POST-DISPATCH
2002: Cardinals
Oct. 10, 2002 -- Remegio Hill, 4, Godchild of Bob Kersee and Jackie Joyner-Kersee, joins Jackie in the Cardinals' dugout before the start of the game two of the NLCS at Busch Stadium in St. Louis Thursday. The pair receive a signed ball from St. Louis receiver Steve Klein. GABRIEL B. TAIT / Post-Dispatch
2005: Jackie Joyner-Kersee
(Monday, February 21, 2005)---Jackie Joyner-Kersee has kept her wardrobe updated over the years. Her closet allows color-coordination of shoes and outfits. (Teak Phillips/St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
2005: NCAA KERSEE
MARCH, 2005 - Former Olympian Jackie Joyner-Kersee PHOTO BY HUY RICHARD MACH/POST-DISPATCH
2009: Nelly's 4th annual Black and White Ball
DECEMBER 6, 2009-Olympian Jackie Joyner Kersee attends Nelly's Black and White Ball at the Chase Park Plaza. PHOTO BY KATHERINE BISH
2012: Jackie Joyner-Kersee Center
Olympic gold medal winner Jackie Joyne-Kersee hugs an old friend Larry Floore across the street from the vacant lot where her childhood home once stood Thursday Jan. 5, 2012, at 1433 Piggott Avenue in East St Louis. "I can't forget you," said Floore, who hadn't seen her in a long time. Photo by Laurie Skrivan, lskrivan@post-dispatch.com
2016: Lauryn Miller, Kirkwood basketball
Former Olympic star and UCLA graduate Jackie Joyner-Kersee (left) was on hand as Lauryn Miller (right) of Kirkwood signed a national letter of intent to play basketball at UCLA on Wednesday, November 9, 2016 at Kirkwood High School. Paul Kopsky, STLhighschoolsports.com
JJK turns 60
Approaching her 60th birthday, Jackie Joyner-Kersee dances with staff members celebrating February birthdays at the East St. Louis center that bears her name on Monday, Feb. 28, 2022. Photo by Robert Cohen, rcohen@post-dispatch.com
JJK turns 60
Markel McGary tries to make an underhand basket with support from Jackie Joyner-Kersee as JJK Academy students participate in a physical fitness obstacle course at the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Center in East St. Louis on Monday, Feb. 28, 2022. Photo by Robert Cohen, rcohen@post-dispatch.com
