Madeline de Jesús

Madeline de Jesús

Personal information
Born	(1957-11-04) November 4, 1957
Residence	Belgium
Sport
Country	Puerto Rico
Event(s)	long jump and triple jump

Madeline de Jesús (born November 4, 1957) is a retired female track and field athlete from Puerto Rico, who competed in the women's long jump and triple jump during her career. Her personal best (6.96 metres) in the long jump was set on July 24, 1988 in Mexico City. De Jesús twin sister Margaret de Jesús also competed at the 1984 Summer Olympics, in the women's 400 metres. Madeline is currently living in Belgium where she's active as a sports teacher and coach.

Olympic Controversy

After Puerto Rico’s Madeline de Jesus came up lame while competing in the long jump, she was unable to run in the 4×400-meter relay at the 1984 Los Angeles Games. Madeline enlisted her identical twin sister, Margaret, as an imposter for a qualifying heat. Margaret ran the second leg of the qualifier, and the team advanced. When the chief coach of the Puerto Rican team learned of the ruse, however, he pulled his team out of the final.

Achievements

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Event	Notes
Representing Puerto Rico
1979	Central American and Caribbean Championships	Guadalajara, Mexico	2nd	Long jump	5.87 m
1981	Central American and Caribbean Championships	Santo Domingo, DR	3rd	Long jump	6.20 m
1982	Central American and Caribbean Games	Havana, Cuba	3rd	Long jump	6.47 m
1983	Central American and Caribbean Championships	Havana, Cuba	2nd	Long jump	6.49 m
1984	Olympic Games	Los Angeles, United States	21st	Long jump	5.63 m
1988	Ibero-American Championships	Ciudad de México, México	1st	Long jump	6.96 m A
	Olympic Games	Seoul, South Korea	23rd	Long jump	6.08 m
1987	Central American and Caribbean Championships	Caracas, Venezuela	2nd	Long jump	6.11 m

References

• sports-reference
• Madeline de Jesús profile at IAAF
• List of famous Puerto Ricans