Eric Edwards Jr. (born 3 January 2000) is an American hurdler specializing in the

110 metres hurdles The 110 metres hurdles, or 110-metre hurdles, is a hurdling track and field event for men. It is included in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympic Games. The female counterpart is the 100 metres hurdles. As part of a racing event, ten hur ...

. He was the only athlete in Pan American U20 Championships history to win twice in the 110 m hurdles, at the

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

and

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

editions. At the

2022 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships The 2022 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships was the 100th NCAA Division I Men's Outdoor Track and Field Championships and the 40th NCAA Division I Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championships held at Hayward Field in Eugene, O ...

, Edwards finished 2nd in a time of 13.15 seconds, the fifth-fastest time in American collegiate history.

Biography

Edwards is from

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

, Texas, where he attended

Langham Creek High School Langham Creek High School is a high school located in an unincorporated area in Harris County, Texas, United States, near Houston. Langham Creek, which was established in 1984, is part of the Cypress Fairbanks Independent School District. Severa ...

. As a prep, he won the 2017 Texas UIL 6A state championships in the 110 m hurdles. Later that season at the

2017 Pan American U20 Athletics Championships The 2017 Pan American U20 Athletics Championships was the nineteenth edition of the biennial track and field competition for under-20 athletes from the Americas, organised by the Association of Panamerican Athletics. It was held in Trujillo, Peru ...

, Edwards won his first international gold medal in the same event. In October 2017, Edwards committed to the Oregon Ducks track and field program, which he represented for one year. At Oregon, he qualified for the

2019 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships The 2019 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships was the 98th NCAA Division I Men's Outdoor Track and Field Championships and the 38th NCAA Division I Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championships held at Mike A. Myers Stadium in A ...

finals but was disqualified for running around one of the hurdles. In July 2019, he transferred to the

LSU Tigers track and field The LSU Tigers track and field team represents LSU Tigers, Louisiana State University in National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA Division I (NCAA), Division I men's indoor and outdoor track and field. History LSU men's track and field ha ...

program for the remainder of his collegiate career. As he was still under 20 years old, he went on to compete at his second Pan American U20 Championships in

San José, Costa Rica San José (; meaning "Saint Joseph") is the capital and largest city of Costa Rica, and the capital of the province of the same name. It is in the center of the country, in the mid-west of the Central Valley, within San José Canton. San ...

later that year, where he won the gold medal again despite healing from a sprained ankle. In doing so, he became the first athlete in meeting history to win twice in the 110 m hurdles. Edwards qualified for the 2021 United States Olympic trials, but he stopped prior to reaching the second hurdle and did not advance to the finals. At LSU, Edwards competed at a further three NCAA championships, with a best finish of 2nd at the

in a

personal best A personal record or personal best (abbreviated to PR or PB) is an individual's best performance in a given sporting discipline. It is most commonly found in athletic sports, such as track and field, other forms of running, swimming and weightlift ...

of 13.15 seconds. The performance was described as "the race of his life" as it made him the fifth fastest performer in American collegiate history, and the fourth fastest in the world that year. Edwards went on to make the finals of the

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

and

2023 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships The 2023 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships were held at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon from July 6–9, 2023. They served as USA Track & Field's (USATF) national championships in track and field for the United States. The results of the ...

. He came closest to making the U.S. team with his fourth-place finish in 2023, just outside the top three needed to qualify for the

2023 World Athletics Championships The 2023 World Athletics Championships ( hu, 2023-as atlétikai világbajnokság), the nineteenth edition of the World Athletics Championships, are scheduled to be held from 19 August to 27 August 2023 in Budapest, Hungary. The city of Budapes ...

Statistics

Best performances

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, Eric Jr. Living people 2000 births 21st-century American sportsmen American male hurdlers Oregon Ducks men's track and field athletes LSU Tigers track and field athletes Track and field athletes from Houston