Jon Ridgeon

{{Infobox sportsperson

|birth_date= {{birth date and age|1967|02|14|df=y}}

|birth_place= Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England

|death_date=

|death_place=

|sport = 110m hurdles

|club = Cambridge & Coleridge AC
Belgrave Harriers

|medaltemplates={{MedalSport | Men's Athletics}}

{{MedalCountry | {{GBR2}} }}

}}

Jonathan Peter Ridgeon (born 14 February 1967) is an English former athlete who competed mainly in the 110 metres hurdles and the 400 metres hurdles. In the 110m hurdles, he won the silver medal at the 1987 World Championships and the gold medal at the 1987 Universiade. He represented Great Britain at the 1988 Seoul Olympics and the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.

Biography

Ridgeon was born in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk.{{cite web|title=Jon Ridgeon |url=http://www.sporting-heroes.net/athletics/great-britain/jon-ridgeon-791/hurdling-career_a09688/|publisher=Sporting Heroes|access-date=December 24, 2018}} He won the 110 m hurdles at the European Junior Championship in 1985, ahead of his fellow British athlete Colin Jackson, who finished runner-up. Ridgeon then finished second to Jackson at the 1986 World Junior Championships. He represented England in the 110 metres hurdles event, at the 1986 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh.{{cite web|url=https://teamengland.org/commonwealth-games-history/edinburgh-1986/athletes|title=1986 Athletes|website=Team England}}{{cite web|url=https://thecgf.com/results/games/3041/19/all|title=England team in 1986|website=Commonwealth Games Federation|access-date=6 October 2019|archive-date=19 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190419153600/https://thecgf.com/results/games/3041/19/all|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=https://thecgf.com/results/athletes/36403|title=Athletes and results|website=Commonwealth Games Federation}}

Ridgeon was an All-American for the SMU Mustangs track and field team, finishing 6th in the 110 m hurdles at the 1986 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships.{{cite web |url=https://www.ustfccca.org/records-lists/meet-history-by-event?gender=1&series=3369&event=15 |title=110 meters hurdles at the NCAA Division I Men's Outdoor Track and Field Championships |website=USTFCCCA |access-date=28 December 2024}}

Ridgeon won the 110 m hurdles gold medal at the 1987 Universiade (World University Games) in Zagreb. Ridgeon became the British 110 metres hurdles metres champion after winning the British AAA Championships title at the 1987 AAA Championships.{{cite web|url=https://www.nuts.org.uk/Champs/AAA/index.htm |title=AAA, WAAA and National Championships Medallists |website=National Union of Track Statisticians |access-date=21 June 2025}}{{cite web|url=http://www.gbrathletics.com/bc/aaa.htm |title=AAA Championships (men) |website=GBR Athletics |access-date=21 June 2025}}

At the 1987 World Championships in Rome, Ridgeon won a silver medal in the 110 m hurdles (with Jackson taking the bronze medal). Ridgeon then finished in fifth place at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul (where Jackson came second). However Ridgeon and Jackson's rivalry was comparatively short-lived, as Ridgeon began to develop injuries that led to him missing out on most major events in the following years.

When Ridgeon returned to regular competition, he switched to the 400 metres hurdles, before his retiring from the sport.

Ridgeon was educated at Magdalene College, Cambridge. In 1998 he became a founding and managing partner of Fast Track, a sports marketing agency (the agency was sold in 2007{{cite news|title=Athletes strike gold with sale of marketing agency|author=Alistair Osborne|date=March 14, 2007|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/markets/2805725/Athletes-strike-gold-with-sale-of-marketing-agency.html|publisher=The Daily Telegraph}}). As well as working with Fast Track, Ridgeon has also been a TV commentator for the BBC and BSkyB since retiring as an athlete.

In 2018, Ridgeon was appointed chief executive officer of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF).https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/athletics/46433028 "Jon Ridgeon: IAAF appoints British former hurdler as new chief executive", BBC, December 3, 2018.https://www.athleticsweekly.com/news/jon-ridgeon-announced-as-iaaf-ceo-1039919249/ "Jon Ridgeon announced as IAAF CEO", Athletics Weekly, December 3, 2018.

Personal bests

110m H - 13.29 (Zagreb, Croatia, 15 Jul 1987)
400m H - 48.73 (Rieti, Italy, 6 Sep 1992)

Achievements

{{AchievementTable\|Event=yes}}
colspan="6"\| Representing the {{GBR2}} / {{ENG}}
rowspan=2\|1985 \|World Indoor Games \|Paris, France \|bgcolor="cc9966"\| 3rd \|60 m hurdles \|7.70 sec
European Junior Championships \|Cottbus, Germany \|bgcolor="gold"\| 1st \|110 m hurdles \|13.46
rowspan=4\|1986 \|rowspan=2\|World Junior Championships \|rowspan=2\|Athens, Greece \|bgcolor=silver\|2nd \|110m hurdles \|13.91 (wind: -0.8 m/s)
bgcolor=gold\|1st \|4 × 100 m relay \|39.80
Commonwealth Games \|Edinburgh, Scotland \|5th \|110 m hurdles \|13.76
European Championships \|Stuttgart, West Germany \|6th \|110 m hurdles \|13.70 (wind: +2.0 m/s)
rowspan=2\|1987 \|World Student Games (Universiade) \|Zagreb, Croatia \|bgcolor="gold"\| 1st \|110 m hurdles \|13.29
World Championships \|Rome, Italy \|bgcolor="silver"\| 2nd \|110 m hurdles \|13.29
1988 \|Olympic Games \|Seoul, South Korea \|5th \|110 m hurdles \|13.52
rowspan=2\|1992 \|European Indoor Championships \|Genoa, Italy \|4th \|60 m hurdles \|7.78
World Cup \|Havana, Cuba \|bgcolor="silver" \| 2nd \|400 m hurdles \|49.01
rowspan=2\|1996 \|European Cup \|Madrid, Spain \|bgcolor="silver"\| 2nd \|400 m hurdles \|49.84
Olympic Games \|Atlanta, United States \|semi-final \|400 m hurdles \|49.43

colspan="6"| Representing the {{GBR2}} / {{ENG}}

rowspan=2|1985

|World Indoor Games

|Paris, France

|bgcolor="cc9966"| 3rd

|60 m hurdles

|7.70 sec

European Junior Championships

|Cottbus, Germany

|bgcolor="gold"| 1st

|110 m hurdles

|13.46

rowspan=4|1986

|rowspan=2|World Junior Championships

|rowspan=2|Athens, Greece

|bgcolor=silver|2nd

|110m hurdles

|13.91 (wind: -0.8 m/s)

bgcolor=gold|1st

|4 × 100 m relay

|39.80

Commonwealth Games

|Edinburgh, Scotland

|5th

|110 m hurdles

|13.76

European Championships

|Stuttgart, West Germany

|6th

|110 m hurdles

|13.70 (wind: +2.0 m/s)

rowspan=2|1987

|World Student Games (Universiade)

|Zagreb, Croatia

|bgcolor="gold"| 1st

|110 m hurdles

|13.29

World Championships

|Rome, Italy

|bgcolor="silver"| 2nd

|110 m hurdles

|13.29

1988

|Olympic Games

|Seoul, South Korea

|5th

|110 m hurdles

|13.52

rowspan=2|1992

|European Indoor Championships

|Genoa, Italy

|4th

|60 m hurdles

|7.78

World Cup

|Havana, Cuba

|bgcolor="silver" | 2nd

|400 m hurdles

|49.01

rowspan=2|1996

|European Cup

|Madrid, Spain

|bgcolor="silver"| 2nd

|400 m hurdles

|49.84

Olympic Games

|Atlanta, United States

|semi-final

|400 m hurdles

|49.43

References

External links

{{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ri/jon-ridgeon-1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200418040842/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ri/jon-ridgeon-1.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2020-04-18 |title=Jon Ridgeon}}

Category:1967 births

Category:Living people

Category:English male hurdlers

Category:British male hurdlers

Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1988 Summer Olympics

Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1996 Summer Olympics

Category:Olympic athletes for Great Britain

Category:Alumni of Magdalene College, Cambridge

Category:People from Burwell, Cambridgeshire

Category:Sportspeople from Bury St Edmunds

Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1986 Commonwealth Games

Category:Commonwealth Games athletes for England