Erick Walder (born November 5, 1971, in Mobile, Alabama) is an American former long jumper. He was a silver medalist at the 1997 World Championships in Athletics and twice bronze medallist at the IAAF World Indoor Championships (1995, 1999). He also took two silver medals at the Goodwill Games (1994, 1998).
His personal best was 8.74 meters, achieved in April 1994 in El Paso. He ranked number one in the world on performance in the 1994 and 1996 seasons.
Collegiate career
Walder competed collegiately for the long jump/triple jump juggernaut University of Arkansas where he won 10 NCAA long jump and triple jump titles, indoor and outdoor.Erick Walder He still holds the collegiate outdoor long jump record with a leap of . Walder was inducted into The University of Arkansas Hall of Fame in 2010.Track & Field News: Records Razorback Track & Field Media Guide
Walder claimed the NCAA outdoor and indoor long jumps and the indoor triple jump titles in 1992, 1993 and 1994, and added the outdoor triple jump win to sweep the 1994 NCAA meets:
Event Years won NCAA Indoor Triple Jump 1992, 1993, 1994 NCAA Indoor Long Jump 1992, 1993, 1994 NCAA Outdoor Triple Jump 1994 NCAA Outdoor Long Jump 1992, 1993, 1994
Walder finished 3rd in the triple jump at the 1993 NCAA Outdoor Championships.
International competitions Representing the 1990 World Junior Championships Plovdiv, Bulgaria 15th Triple jump 15.00 m (wind: -0.8 m/s) 1993 World Championships Stuttgart, Germany 4th Long jump 8.05 m 1994 Goodwill Games St. Petersburg, Russia 2nd Long jump 8.39 m 1995 World Indoor Championships Barcelona, Spain 3rd Long jump8.14 m 1997 World Indoor Championships Paris, France 4th Long jump 8.24 m World Championships Athens, Greece 2nd Long jump8.38 m IAAF Grand Prix Final Fukuoka, Japan 3rd Long jump 8.40 m w 1998 Goodwill Games Uniondale, United States 2nd Long jump8.38 m 1999 World Indoor Championships Maebashi, Japan 3rd Long jump 8.30 m
Rankings
Walder was ranked in the top ten long jumpers in the world by Track and Field News for eight consecutive years and as the best long jumper in the US three times.
Year LJ world rank LJ US rank TJ US rank 1992 6th 4th - 1993 3rd 2nd 5th 1994 3rd 3rd 3rd 1995 8th 6th - 1996 6th 4th 6th 1997 3rd 1st - 1998 2nd 1st - 1999 4th 1st - 2000 - 6th -
Drug issues
In 2004, Walder tested positive for a legal medication that is banned by USATF. The sample was delivered on June 5, 2004, at the IAAF Adidas Oregon Track Classic. He received an IAAF suspension from October 2004 to October 2006. Walder was reinstated in 2007. He competed professionally for two years before his retirement in 2010.
Personal life In April 2014, Walder married Denise Chandler, a chiropractor. They reside with their son, EJ in Fayetteville. He has another son, Trenton Walder, who resides in Conway, Arkansas. They divorced in February 2018.
References
External links
Erick Walder at USATF