Richard James (sprinter, born 1979)

Richard James (born 1 December 1979) is a Jamaican former sprinter specializing in the 400 metres and the 8th World Athletics Indoor Championships gold medallist in the 4 × 400 m relay. He was an All-American track and field runner for the LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds and won medals at the Central American and Caribbean Championships in Athletics and the NACAC Under-25 Championships in Athletics.

Richard James

Personal information
Born	(1979-12-01) 1 December 1979 (age 45)[1][2] Boston Beach, Portland, Jamaica[3]
Home town	Portland, Jamaica[4]
Education	Southwestern Christian College LIU Brooklyn
Height	175 cm (5 ft 9 in)[3]
Weight	75 kg (165 lb)[3]
Sport
Country	Jamaica
Sport	Sport of athletics
Event	400 metres
College team	Southwestern Christian College Rams LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds
Achievements and titles
National finals	2002 Jamaican Champs  • 200m, 8th 2003 NCAAs  • 400m, 8th 2003 Jamaican Champs  • 400m, 8th 2004 Jamaican Champs  • 400m, 4th
Personal bests	400m: 45.66 (2003) 400mH: 51.87 (2006) 800m: 1:52.89 (2000)
Medal record Men's athletics Representing  Jamaica World Indoor Championships 2004 Budapest 4 × 400 m relay NACAC Under-25 Championships 2002 San Antonio 4 × 100 m relay 2002 San Antonio 4 × 400 m relay Central American and Caribbean Championships 2003 St. George's 4 × 400 m relay
Updated on November 2024

Career

James achieved his first international championship experience at the 2002 NACAC Under-25 Championships in Athletics, where he entered in three events. In the 400 m, he qualified for the finals and finished 5th. He won a bronze medal anchoring the 4 × 100 m relay and won silver running 2nd leg of the 4 × 400 m, finishing only behind the United States.^[2]

Following a brief NJCAA career with the Southwestern Christian College Rams, James joined the LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds track and field team in the NCAA, where he broke several Northeast Conference track records.^[5] After not advancing from the heats of the 2002 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships, James qualified for the 2003 NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships 400 m final, where he placed 8th and was All American. At the 2003 Central American and Caribbean Championships in Athletics, James finished 5th in the 400 m and won another silver medal anchoring the 4 × 400 m relay.^[2]

James achieved his greatest international success at the 2004 IAAF World Indoor Championships, where he helped his Jamaican team to a gold medal by leading off their 4 × 400 m team to a heat win. In the finals, James and Sanjay Ayre were replaced by Gregory Haughton and Davian Clarke, and Jamaica won in a world-leading 3:05.21 clocking.^[2]

James qualified for three Jamaican Athletics Championships national finals in the 400 m, placing 8th at the 2002 and 2003 editions and achieving a best finish of 4th in 2004.^[2]

James was selected as part of the Jamaican relay team at the 2024 Summer Olympics, but he did not ultimately compete in the heats or finals of the Olympic 4 × 400 m.^[5][4]

Personal life

James was born on 1 December 1979 in Boston Beach, Portland, Jamaica.^[4][3] He first attended Southwestern Christian College in Terrell, Texas before studying at LIU Brooklyn, where he graduated with a master's degree in exercise physiology in 2007.^[6][7]

After graduation, James became a performance director and adjunct sports science professor at LIU Brooklyn.^[8] In 2018, he became the Director of High Performance at Poly Prep in Brooklyn.^[6]

In his capacity as a coach, James has trained and worked with distance runner Julius Mutekanga and footballer Adam Ozeri.^[9]

While a professional athlete, James was sponsored by Puma.^[2]

Statistics

Personal best progression

400m progression

#	Mark	Pl.	Competition	Venue	Date	Ref.
1	48.37		Mets	New York, NY	2 Feb 2002	[10]
2	48.23	(Heat 6-Coll)	Arm Inv	New York, NY	7 Feb 2002	[11]
3	47.51	4th	IC4A	Boston, MA	2 Mar 2002	[12]
4	47.01	(Round 2)	Duke Inv	Durham, NC	5 Apr 2002	[13]
5	46.45	(Heat)	Northeast	Emmitsburg, MD	3 May 2002	[14]
6	46.06		Northeast	Emmitsburg, MD	4 May 2002	[15]
7	45.96		IC4A	Princeton, NJ	17 May 2002	[16]
8	45.91		Northeast	Baltimore, MD	3 May 2003	[17]
9	45.67	(Heat 1)	NCAA	Sacramento, CA	11 Jun 2003	[18]
10	45.66	5th (Semifinal 2)	NCAA	Sacramento, CA	12 Jun 2003	[19]