Milton Bruce Ottey (born December 29, 1959) is a retired Canadian

high jump The high jump is a track and field event in which competitors must jump unaided over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights without dislodging it. In its modern, most-practiced format, a bar is placed between two standards with a crash mat f ...

er who competed at the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and commonly known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the ...

and the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and officially branded as Seoul 1988 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. 159 nations were represe ...

and won two

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games is a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations, which consists mostly, but not exclusively, of territories of the former British Empire. The event was first held in 1930 ...

gold medals.

Biography

Ottey came to Canada at around the age of 7. He attended and graduated from high school in the

Toronto District School Board The Toronto District School Board (TDSB), formerly known as English-language Public District School Board No. 12 prior to 1999, is the English-language public-secular school board for Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The minority public-secular franco ...

(TDSB). He received a full

athletic scholarship An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university or a private school, private high school awarded to an individual based predominantly on their ability to play in a sport. Athletic scholarships are common in the U ...

from the

University of Texas at El Paso The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is a public university, public research university in El Paso, Texas, United States. Founded in 1913 as the State School of Mines and Metallurgy, it is the third oldest academic component of the Univers ...

(UTEP), where he received his bachelor's degree in education. He was the number-one-ranked high jumper in the world in 1982 and a 23-time indoor and outdoor national champion in the men's high jump event. In between his two Olympic appearances, Ottey won the British

AAA Championships The AAA Championships was an annual track and field competition organised by the Amateur Athletic Association of England. It was the foremost domestic athletics event in the United Kingdom during its lifetime, despite the existence of the offi ...

title in the high jump event at the

1985 AAA Championships The 1985 AAA Championships sponsored by (Kodak) was the 1985 edition of the annual outdoor track and field competition organised by the Amateur Athletic Association (AAA). It was held from 13 to 14 July 1985 at the Crystal Palace National Sport ...

. After retiring from active competition, Ottey spent several years coaching at various universities throughout the United States, including

Kent State University Kent State University (KSU) is a Public university, public research university in Kent, Ohio, United States. The university includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio located in Kent State University at Ashtabula, Ashtabula, Kent State ...

and

University of New Mexico The University of New Mexico (UNM; ) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States. Founded in 1889 by the New Mexico Territorial Legislature, it is the state's second oldest university, a flagship university in th ...

before moving back to

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

. Ottey is the owner and director OT Fitness Educational Services, inc. Ottey took over the reins of the UK kids core skills development program International Fun and Team Athletics (IFTA) in Canada. OT Fitness provide programs in schools that promote health and fitness to assist in the core skills development of children and teens. OT Fitness looks at the obstacles to a healthy lifestyle and helps kids jump over them, crawl under them, run around them and tackle them head on. Ottey resides in Scarbough with his wife and three children. He is a cousin of nine-time Olympic medallist

Merlene Ottey Merlene Joyce Ottey (born 10 May 1960) is a Jamaican-Slovenian former track and field sprint (running), sprinter. She began her career representing Jamaica in 1978 and continued to do so for 24 years before representing Slovenia from 2002 to 20 ...

. Ottey was inducted into the Athletics Canada Hall of Fame in 2012. These days, the 59-year-old owns and operates OT Fitness, a company that runs health and wellness programs for school-age kids. Ottey is currently an assistant track coach specializing in jumps at York University.

Achievements

* 7-Time Canadian National High Jump Champion (1981–84, 1986–88) * Won the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

& US National titles in 1982. ¹Representing the Americas Note: Results with a q, indicate overall position in qualifying round.

References

External links