Gunnar Nixon

Gunnar Nixon
Nixon at the Hypo-Meeting in 2013
Personal information
Full nameJames Gunnar Nixon
Born (1993-01-13) January 13, 1993
Weatherford, Oklahoma, U.S.
Height6 ft 4 in (193 cm)[1]
Weight175 lb (79 kg)[1]
Sport
SportTrack and field
EventDecathlon
College teamArkansas Razorbacks
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)Decathlon: 8,312 (2013)
Hepathlon: 6,232 (2013)

James Gunnar Nixon (born January 13, 1993) is an American track and field athlete who competes in the decathlon. He broke the American high school record for the event in 2011, and was the World Junior Champion in 2012. He won his first national title indoors in 2013, and was runner-up at the 2013 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. His personal record for the decathlon is 8,312 points at the 2013 IAAF World Championships.

Career

Born in Weatherford, Oklahoma,[1] he was the fourth child of Tim and Kerri Nixon. He was raised in Tulsa until he moved to Edmond as a high school sophomore.[1] He attended Edmond Santa Fe High School, where he started taking part in decathlon competitions and broke the national high school record with a score of 8,035 points (which brought him the Gatorade Track and Field Athlete of the Year Award in the men's section).[2] He won at the Arcadia Invitational high school competition with a meet record of 7,573 points (with junior implements).[3] He entered the individual high jump at the 2012 Summer Youth Olympics and placed sixth in his final.[4] At the 2011 Pan American Junior Athletics Championships he took the silver medal in the decathlon behind American team mate Kevin Lazas.[5]

He won an athletic scholarship to study at the University of Arkansas. In his first season for the Arkansas Razorbacks he broke the world junior record for the indoor heptathlon with a score of 6,022 points. He followed this with a runner-up finish at the Southeastern Conference indoor championships, then gained his first All-American honours with an eighth-place finish at the NCAA Indoor Championship. In the outdoor season he came third at the SEC Outdoor Championship meet then came fifth with an American junior record of 7,892 points at the NCAA Outdoor Championship. He won both the American junior title, and the gold medal at the 2012 World Junior Championships in Athletics.[2]

Nixon started the 2013 indoor season with a heptathlon personal record of 6,232 points to win at the USA Indoor Track and Field Championships – his first national title.[6] At the Hypo-Meeting in Europe in May he broke 8,000 points for the first time in a decathlon with senior implements, taking third place with a score of 8,136 points.[7] Forgoing collegiate competition that year, he focused on the 2013 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. There he led for the first day but fell behind Ashton Eaton in the second day to close the decathlon with a personal record of 8,198 points for second place.[8] This earned him selection for the 2013 World Championships in Athletics.

Fall 2013

Joined Coach Jeremy Fischer[9] and Craig Poole[10] at USA Olympic Training Center[11] in Chula Vista, California. Coach Art Venegas will assist in the throws.[12]

Personal bests

Information from World Athletics profile unless otherwise noted.

Outdoor

As of June 23, 2025
Event Performance Location Date Points
Decathlon — Moscow August 10–11, 2013 8,312 points
100 meters 10.80 (+1.0 m/s) Des Moines June 21, 2013 906 points
Long jump 7.80 m (25 ft 7 in) (+0.4 m/s) Moscow August 10, 2013 1,010 points
Shot put 15.03 m (49 ft 3+1⁄2 in) Santa Barbara April 4, 2014 792 points
High jump 2.17 m (7 ft 1+1⁄4 in) Bloomington June 15, 2012 963 points
400 meters 48.37 Arcadia April 8, 2011 931 points
110 meters hurdles 14.34 (+0.9 m/s) Bloomington June 16, 2012 931 points
Discus throw 43.32 m (142 ft 1+1⁄2 in) Chula Vista April 24, 2014 732 points
Pole vault 4.70 m (15 ft 5 in) Salzburg May 24, 2014 819 points
Javelin throw 60.44 m (198 ft 3+1⁄2 in) Des Moines June 22, 2013 744 points
1500 meters 4:22.36 Barcelona July 11, 2012 796 points
Virtual Best Performance 8,584 points

Indoor

As of June 23, 2025
Event Performance Location Date Points
Heptathlon — Albuquerque March 1–2, 2013 6,232 points
60 meters 6.86 Albuquerque March 1, 2013 933 points
Long jump 7.53 m (24 ft 8+1⁄4 in) Fayetteville January 27, 2012 942 points
Shot put 13.97 m (45 ft 10 in) Fayetteville January 27, 2012 727 points
High jump 2.15 m (7 ft 1⁄2 in) Boston March 12, 2010 944 points
60 meters hurdles 8.09 Lexington February 25, 2012 959 points
Pole vault 4.80 m (15 ft 8+3⁄4 in) Albuquerque March 2, 2013 849 points
1000 meters 2:39.08 Nampa March 10, 2012 804 points
Virtual Best Performance 6,238 points

References

  1. ^ a b c d "How it took a village to raise Edmond Santa Fe track champion Gunnar Nixon". newsok.co. April 21, 2011. Archived from the original on April 24, 2011.
  2. ^ a b "Gunnar Nixon". arkansasrazorbacks.com. Archived from the original on July 21, 2013. Retrieved June 23, 2025.
  3. ^ Arcadia Invitational All-Time Lists. Arcadia Invitational. Retrieved on 2013-08-10.
  4. ^ Boy's High Jump Final A Archived 2010-08-25 at the Wayback Machine. Singapore2010. Retrieved on 2013-08-10.
  5. ^ Pan American Junior Championships 2011 Archived 2013-10-31 at the Wayback Machine. World Junior Athletics History. Retrieved on 2013-08-10.
  6. ^ Gunnar Nixon. Tilastopaja. Retrieved on 2013-08-10.
  7. ^ Sampaolo, Diego (2013-05-26). Canada's Warner and Theisen triumph in Gotzis - IAAF Combined Events Challenge. IAAF. Retrieved on 2013-08-10.
  8. ^ Mulkeen, Jon (2013-06-23). Eaton and Day win US combined events titles – IAAF Combined Events Challenge. IAAF. Retrieved on 2013-08-10.
  9. ^ "Maximum Velocity Athletics". maximumvelocityathletics.com. Archived from the original on December 24, 2013. Retrieved June 23, 2025.
  10. ^ "Craig Poole Staff Bio - Women's Track Head Coach". Archived from the original on May 9, 2015. Retrieved June 23, 2025.
  11. ^ "USOC Training Center Chula Vista, California". teamusa.org. Archived from the original on 2013-08-12. Retrieved 2013-08-12.
  12. ^ "Gunnar Nixon finishes 13th with PB at Moscow World Champs 2013 | IAAF World Championships Moscow 2013 - Interviews & Rac... - Flotrack". Archived from the original on 2013-12-24. Retrieved 2013-08-12.
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