Florence Delorez Griffith Joyner was born in Los Angeles, California. When she was 4 years old, her parents divorced, and she moved with her mother and 10 siblings to a public housing project in the Watts section of the city. At the age of 7, Griffith joined the Sugar Ray Robinson Organization, soon participating in track and field competitions. At the age of 14, she won the Jesse Owens National Youth Games, repeating her success in the following year. Griffith attended Jordan High School, running for its track team, graduating after setting new school records in 100 and 220-yard sprints. During this time, she expressed her fashion sense with her handmade clothes and decorative fingernail, which later became her trademark.
After high school, Griffith studied business at the California State University (CSU) at Northridge. She left after a year to work at a bank to support her family, not before helping the CSU track team win the national championship. Two years later, at the age of 21, she enrolled at the University of California at Los Angeles after her former coach found her financial aid. In this same year, she was qualified for the 100-meter trials for the 1980 Summer Olympics, though the US Government boycotted those Olympic Games. Griffith continued to compete for her school, graduating in 1983 with a bachelor’s degree in psychology.
At 25, Griffith got qualified for the 200-meter distance at the 1984 Summer Olympics, in which she won the silver medal. At the games, she attracted the attention of the spectators for her bold spandex racing suits. After the games, Griffith continues to run and compete part-time while working at a bank. In 1987, at the age of 28, she married the Olympic triple jump Al Joyner. At the time, she returned to practice professionally toward the 1987 World Championships in Rome, where she finished second in the 200-meter sprint and ranked second in that year’s Track and Field News world rankings.
Though Griffith’s strength was in the 200-meter sprint, she decided to work on her 100-meter abilities. She worked with her coach and her husband, and when she came to the US Olympic Trials, she set a new 100-meters record with a 10.49 seconds’ sprint. At the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, Griffith won three gold medals – in the 4×100 meter, the 100-meter, and in the 200-meter, in which she broke the world record with 21.34 seconds – a record that still stands. She also won a silver medal with her teammates at the 4×400-meter relay. Griffith’s fashion choices were the center of discussion, especially her six-inch nails painted red, white, blue, and gold.
Following her Olympic success, Griffith signed numerous endorsement deals, mainly in Japan. She also received many accolades, such as Female Athlete of the Year by The Associated Press and Athlete of the Year by Track and Field magazine.
In 1989, at the age of 30, Griffith announced her retirement. In the following years, she established a foundation for underprivileged children, and in 1993 she served as co-chair of the President’s Council on Physical Fitness.
In 1996, after five years off the track, Griffith decided to set a new world record at the 400-meter sprint in the hope of becoming a triple-world-record holder. She began to train toward the 1996 Summer Olympics but had to withdraw because of an Achilles tendon.
Two years later, Griffith had died of suffocation during an epileptic seizure. She was 38 years old.
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