Personal information | |
---|---|
Born | July 8, 1972 |
Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) |
Weight | 79 kg (174 lb; 12.4 st) |
Sport | |
Country | Ghana |
Achievements and titles | |
Personal best(s) | Long Jump – 8.12 m Triple Jump – 17.23 m |
Andrew Owusu (born July 8, 1972) is a Ghanaian athlete who competed in the triple jump and long jump.
His personal best in the triple jump is 17.23 meters, achieved in August 1998 in Dakar. This is the current Ghanaian record as well as the fourth best triple jump result in Africa, behind Ndabazinhle Mdhlongwa (17.34 m), Ajayi Agbebaku (17.26 m) and Khotso Mokoena (17.25 m).[1] His personal best in the long jump is 8.12 meters, achieved on June 24, 1995, in Saarijärvi. His personal best in the long jump was a Ghanaian record between 1995 and 2003.
He received a doctorate degree from Middle Tennessee State University in 2004 and, as of 2021, is a Full Professor in the public health area within the Health and Human Performance Department at Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU). He also volunteers as a Track & Field assistant coach at MTSU in the horizontal jumping events.
Owusu was the country (Ghana) coordinator for the Ghana School-based Student Health Surveillance System (2006–2020). The latter surveillance system was jointly managed in partnership with the World Health Organization (WHO), US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Ghana Education Service (GES).[2]
Owusu attended the Presbyterian Boys' Secondary School (Presec Legon) and the University of Alabama, where he was an 8-time All-American with the Alabama Crimson Tide's Track and Field Team, competing in the long jump and triple jump. He became the university's record-holder in the Long Jump of Indoor Track and the Triple Jump of Outdoor Track, and was the 1996 NCAA National Champion in the Long Jump of NCAA Indoor Track and Field. He competed in the Summer 1996 Olympic Games (Atlanta), 2000 Olympic Games (Sydney) and 2004 Olympic Games (Athens), representing Ghana.[3]