Meyer Prinstein
(1878 - 1925)
A member of the 1900, 1904 and 1906 Olympic teams, Meyer Prinstein was the world's greatest horizontal jumper at the turn of the 20th century. A graduate of Syracuse University, Prinstein first came to national prominence when he set an American long jump record of 23' 7 1/4" in 1898. Two years later, he captured the world record with a jump of 24' 7 1/4". He was also a four-time national champion in the long jump. At the 1900 Olympics, Prinstein led the qualifiers in the long jump. However, he wound up second in the event because the official in charge of the Syracuse athletes prohibited Prinstein from competing in the final, which was held on a Sunday -- even though he was Jewish and had no religious reason for not competing. The winner was fellow American (and Hall of Famer) Alvin Kraenzlein. A day later, Prinstein won the triple jump with an Olympic record of 47' 5 3/4". In 1904, he became the only athlete to win both the long jump and triple jump at the same Olympics. He displayed his versatility by taking fifth in the 400 meters. At the 1906 Athens Olympics, Prinstein again won the long jump and was 22nd in the triple jump. After retiring from competition, Prinstein became a lawyer.
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