Roger Kingdom was a former sprint hurdler from the United States. He was born August 26, 1962 in Vienna, Georgia. He is the third of six children by Roy and Christine Kingdom. Growing up, he spent a large portion of his childhood working on his Grandfather Matt Wallace’s farm. It was there he learned the value of hard work. He also learned how to face adversity and overcome obstacles. 

While attending Vienna High School, he was an athlete of notice who in his formative years excelled also at the high jump and discus. He was a noteworthy American football player. Originally, he attended the University of Pittsburgh on a football scholarship, but rosed to prominence on the track team. He had a long and distinguished career on the track in the 110-meter-high hurdles after college. He is a five-time National US Champion (1985, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1995). He was ranked five times number one in the world by Track and Field News (1984, 1985, 1988, 1989, and 1990). He has gold Medals in the World Cup (1989), World University Games (1989), Indoor World Championships (1989), Pan American Games (1983, 1995), and a Bronze Medal in the Outdoor World Championships (1995). In the Seoul Olympics he joined the late Lee Calhoun (1956 & 1960), as one of only two men ever to win consecutive Olympic titles in the 110-hurdles (1984 & 1988).

In Zurich Switzerland on August 16, 1989, he separated himself from the others by surpassing the World and American mark of 12.93 set by Renaldo Nehemiah. He became the second person ever to break the 13-second barrier. His new mark of 12.92 clearly established him as one of the greatest high hurdlers of all time.

His mark of 12.92 was broken four years later by Colin Jackson at the 1993 World Championships with a best of 12.91. However, his mark remained the American Record for 17 years. In 1991 his career was hampered when he sustained an injury while playing a pick-up game of basketball on the last day of a two-week training session in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. He underwent ACL reconstruction surgery to repair the damage and remove bone chips from his knee. Some people thought this was the beginning of the end of his illustrious career. They were wrong. As stated by late Dr. Freddie Fu, his physician at the time, “You can never underestimate the power of an athlete.” Roger worked back to win the 1995 US National Championship, and for the first time in his career earned a place on the Outdoor World Championship Team to compete in Gothenburg Sweden. He was picked as one of the favorites, but tendinitis in his surgically repaired knee prevented him from winning the Gold. He won the bronze medal in his first attempt at the Outdoor World Championship. He officially retired from active competition in August of 1999. 

In 2001 he returned to the University of Pittsburgh to complete his B.S. Degree. At the same time, he interned with the University’s football team under the supervision of Coach Walt Harris and Buddy Morris. After graduating, he followed coach Buddy Morris to the Cleveland Browns on a minority internship for Strength & Conditioning department. At the end of the six-week internship, He remained as a Volunteer Intern for the 2002-2003 season.

In 2004 he joined the track and field cross country coaching Staff at California University of Pennsylvania. In 2006 he was promoted to Director of men and women’s track and field cross country. He remained there until 2013. In 2014 He was offered a position by new head coach Bruce Arians to join his staff with the Arizona Football Club reuniting him with coach Buddy Morris on the strength and conditioning staff as their Speed and Conditioning Coordinator.

In 2018 following coach Bruce Arians retirement, He returned to Florida as the Interim Director of track and field cross country at the University of Central Florida. In 2019 after coming out of retirement, coach Bruce Arians became the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Roger was given an opportunity to rejoin his staff as the Speed and Condition Coordinator. In 2020, a rough year where every country experienced a major epidemic that nearly paralyzed our world, there was a bright spot. That year the Tampa Bay Buccaneers won the Super Bowl LV Championship. We became the NFL World Champions. That made me only the second person in history to have won two Gold Medals and a Super Bowl Ring. The first was the late “Bullet” Bob Hayes.

That’s His-Story.