Kim Jones (born May 2, 1958) is a retired American marathoner and road runner, and author of the autobiography, Dandelion Growing Wild.
Early life and education Kim Jones was born on May 2, 1958, in Sonoma, California. She had a successful high school running career, winning states titles in the 400 meters, 800 meters, and mile.
Distance running career Jones became a marathoner after seeing Joan Samuelson's victory in the first women's Olympic marathon. She ran her first marathon in 1984, finishing with a time of 2:48:48. She soon began working with coach Benji Durden, himself an elite marathoner, and posted a second-place finish at the 1985 Twin Cities Marathon, with a time of 2:35:59. Jones competed in the marathon at the 1987 World Championships, but she did not finish after hurting her ankle. In 1988, she finished 5th in the Olympic Marathon Trials with a time of 2:32:16. At the 1991 Berlin Marathon, she ran her lifetime best of 2:26:40 while finishing second. Her time in Berlin made Jones the third-fastest woman marathoner for 1991.
Given her performances in 1991, Jones was among the favorites to qualify for the 1992 US Olympic team and, perhaps, even compete for a medal at the Olympics. Jones injured her ankle, however, only weeks before the Olympic Marathon Trials, and despite continuing her training, she earned a "Did not finish" result in the race. Later that year, at the New York City Marathon, Jones was again unable to complete the race, this time dropping out after 17 miles due to breathing problems. Following the marathon, she suffered from bronchitis and was bedridden for a month while recovering from her illness.
She competed in the World Championships marathon again at the 1993 meet. Because of a slow pace early in the race, Jones led the pack from the 5K mark through the first thirty kilometers. At this point, she began to fall back, explaining later that she "got real mad" and "wasted energy" after contact with another runner. She finished the race in 8th place with a time of 2:36:33. Two years later, she again competed at the World Championships in the marathon, this time finishing 16th with a time of 2:37:06. In February 1996, she tried for the third time to qualify for the Olympics in the marathon, but she failed to complete the race due to illness. Then, in June, she ran the 5000 meters at the Olympic Trials, a distance she had not previously run competitively. She told Runner's World that because her "breathing problems don't usually start for 15 minutes or so," she would be able to complete the race before her asthma began bothering her. At the Trials, she finished 7th with a time of 15:53.58.
Marathon performances Year Marathon Time Place 1984Honolulu Marathon2:48:485th 1985Twin Cities Marathon2:35:582nd 1986Twin Cities Marathon2:32:311st 1987Twin Cities Marathon2:35:422nd 1988Pittsburgh Marathon2:32:155th 1988Chicago Marathon2:32:035th 1989Houston Marathon2:32:322nd 1989Boston Marathon2:29:343rd 1989Twin Cities Marathon2:31:421st 1989New York Marathon2:27:542nd 1990Boston Marathon2:31:015th 1990New York Marathon2:30:502nd 1991Boston Marathon2:26:402nd 1991Berlin Marathon2:27:502nd 1992Hokkaido Marathon2:35:463rd 1993Boston Marathon2:30:002nd 19931993 World Championships in Athletics2:36:338th 1994Boston Marathon2:31:488th 1995London Marathon2:31:356th 19951995 World Championships in Athleticsshort course 14th 1995Chicago Marathon2:31:242nd 1996New York Marathon2:34:464th 1997Boston Marathon2:32:529th 1997New York Marathon2:32:00 6th 1998Houston Marathon2:35:442nd 1998Chicago Marathon2:43:3716th 2001New York Marathon2:51:2136th
Fastest marathon performances Year Marathon Time Place 1991Boston Marathon02:26:40(2nd) 3rd fastest U.S. marathon performer 1991Berlin Marathon02:27:50 AM(2nd) 1989New York City Marathon02:27:54 AM(2nd) 1989Boston Marathon02:29:34 AM(3rd) 1993Boston Marathon02:30:00 AM(2nd) Plus 12 other performances under 2:33 since 1986
Post-competitive career Jones raised her two daughters in Spokane, Washington, and currently resides in Fort Collins, Colorado, with her husband Jon Sinclair. Since retiring from competition in 1998, she has been a coach with Anaerobic Management, an on-line coaching service for distance runners, as well as a speaker at special events, road races and expos.
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