THE HISTORY OF HERSTORY

Florence Griffith Joyner, also known as “Flo-Jo,” was born in Los Angeles, California, on December 21, 1959 and went on to become one of the fastest competitive runners of the 1980s. Joyner began running at the age of 7, and her gift for speed soon became apparent. She was the 7th child out of 11. At the age of 14, she won the Jesse Owens National Youth Games. She later competed for Jordan High School, where she served as the anchor on the relay team, and then went on to race at the college level.

After attending California State University at Northridge, Joyner transferred to the University of California Los Angeles, where she quickly earned a reputation as a track star. She became a NCAA champion in 1982 with a victory in the 200-meter event. The following year, she took the top spot in the 400 meter Coached by Bob Kersee, Joyner made her Olympic debut in 1984, at the Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles. At the 1984 Summer Olympics, Joyner won a silver medal in the 200-meter run. She married fellow athlete Al Joyner, the brother of famed athlete Jackie Joyner-Kersee. At the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea, Joyner took took home three gold medals, in the 4-by-100 meter relay, and the 100- and 200-meter runs; as well as a silver medal in the 4-by-400 meter relay. Joyner’s Olympic performance brought her all kinds of other accolades. She was named The Associated Press “Female Athlete of the Year” and Track and Field magazine’s “Athlete of the Year.” Joyner also won the Sullivan Award for best amateur athlete. On February 22, 1989, she was joined with her husband and mother by her side to announce the heartbreaking news of her retirement from the sport of Track and Field. After her retirement, she immediately wanted to start a family and become a mother. On November 13, 1990, Flo-Jo gave birth to her only daughter Mary Ruth Joyner. Being a mother did not stop her from continuing to pursue her other passions. Years later, she graduated from beauty college, continued her gift in doing hair and nails and continued her career in acting and writing. Flo-Jo took on many roles outside of track and field. She became the Co-Chair of the President’s Council on Physical Fitness & Sports during the Clinton Presidency. She also guest-starred on multiple TV shows and starred in her own movie which was filmed overseas. On September 21, 1998, the world was crushed to learn of Flo-Jo’s sudden and untimely passing at age 38. She found by her husband in their bed next to their 7 year old daughter, Mary. Despite of the rumors and allegations of use of steroids, medical coroners and the autopsy report proved that there was no drug use of any kind found in her system. Her cause of death was confirmed to be caused by suffocating in her sleep due to an epileptic seizure caused by Cavernous Angioma (bleeding in the brain from ruptured blood vessels). She was survived by her only daughter, Mary and husband, Al Joyner. She still holds the world records in the 100- and 200-meter events. Her contribution to the entertainment, fashion and beauty industry remains influential.

Records

Florence Griffith Joyner is considered to be the fastest woman of all time, and the world records she set in 1988 for the 100 m and 200 m still stand. During the late 1980s, she became a popular figure in international track and field because of her record-setting performances and flashy personal style.

In February 1989, she retired from athletics. Griffith-Joyner remained a pop culture figure through endorsement deals, acting, and designing. She died in her sleep as the result of an epileptic seizure in 1998 at the age of 38.

Beyond her running prowess, Griffith-Joyner was known for her bold fashion choices. Griffith-Joyner appeared at the World Championships in 1987 in Rome wearing a hooded speed skating body suit. In April 1988, she started wearing a running suit with the right leg of the suit extending to the ankle and the left leg of the suit cut off, a style she called the "one-legger". The running suits also had bold colors such as lime green or purple with white bikini bottoms and embellished with lightning bolts.

Her nails also garnered attention for their length and designs. Her nails were four inches long with tiger stripes at the 1988 Olympic trials before switching to fuchsia. For the Olympic games, Griffith-Joyner had six inch nails painted red, white, blue, and gold. Although many sprinters avoided accessories which might slow them down, Griffith-Joyner kept her hair long and wore jewelry while competing. She designed many of her outfits herself and preferred looks which were not conventional.