Vashti Cunningham (born January 18, 1998) is an American

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

athlete specializing in the

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 ...

. She is the daughter of retired

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) quarterback

Randall Cunningham Randall Wade Cunningham Sr. (born March 27, 1963) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons. He spent the majority of his career with the Philadelphia Eagles and is ...

, niece of retired NFL fullback

Sam Cunningham Samuel Lewis Cunningham Jr (August 15, 1950 – September 7, 2021), nicknamed "Bam", was an American professional football player who was a fullback for 10 seasons with the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He played ...

, and the younger sister of Randall Cunningham II. Her mother is Felicity de Jager Cunningham, a former ballerina with the

Dance Theatre of Harlem Dance Theatre of Harlem (DTH) is an American professional ballet company and school based in Harlem, New York City. It was founded in 1969 under the directorship of Arthur Mitchell and later partnered with Karel Shook. Milton Rosenstock served ...

. Vashti, like her brother two years ahead of her in school, jumped for

Bishop Gorman High School Bishop Gorman High School (commonly referred to as Gorman or BGHS) is a four-year private, Roman Catholic college preparatory school located in Las Vegas, Nevada. The school is administered by the Archdiocese of Las Vegas. The school opened i ...

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

until March 2016 when she signed with

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine giv ...

. She announced at that time she intended to continue her education at a university while competing as a professional athlete.

Jumping career

On April 18, 2015, at the Mt. SAC Relays in

Walnut, California Walnut is a city in the eastern part of Los Angeles County in the U.S. state of California. According to the 2020 census, the city had a population of 28,430. The greater Walnut Valley is located between the steep San Jose Hills to the nort ...

, Cunningham jumped , to set the new national high school record. At age 17, that was also equal to the No. 4 world Youth mark (under 19 years old). At that date it was the No. 3 mark in the world in 2015. She was named

USATF USA Track & Field (USATF) is a United States national governing body for the sports of track and field, cross country running, road running, and racewalking (known as the sport of athletics outside the US). The USATF was known between 1979 and 1 ...

Athlete of the Week for that performance. On June 27, 2015, she won the U.S. Junior National Championship. A month later at the 2015 Pan American Junior Athletics Championships, she improved again, jumping . That mark equaled the World Youth Best. On March 12, 2016, Vashti jumped while winning the

2016 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships The 2016 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships was held at the Oregon Convention Center in Portland, Oregon. Organised by USA Track and Field (USATF), the two-day competition took place from March 11 to March 12 and served as the national champ ...

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

. The mark established a new World Junior Record. At the time, just one week before the

2016 IAAF World Indoor Championships The 16th IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics were held between March 17 and 20, 2016 in Portland, Oregon, United States. The event did not feature Russia. Following a WADA investigation into widespread and institutional doping practices ...

, which were held in the same facility in the Portland convention center, Cunningham's jump was the No. 1 jump in the world in 2016. Eight days later, she won the World Indoor Championship. In March 2017, Cunningham jumped to win at 2017 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships. On April 15, 2017, Cunningham jumped to win in

Torrance, California Torrance is a coastal city in the Los Angeles metropolitan area located in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city is part of what is known as the South Bay (Los Angeles County), South Bay region of the metropolitan ...

at Mt. SAC Relays, two weeks later she jumped to win at

Penn Relays The Penn Relays (officially The Penn Relay Carnival) is the oldest and largest track and field competition in the United States, hosted annually since April 21, 1895 by the University of Pennsylvania at Franklin Field in Philadelphia. In 2012 ...

. Cunningham jumped to place 3rd behind World Champion Mariya Lasitskene on May 27 in Eugene at IAAF Diamond League 2017

Prefontaine Classic The Prefontaine Classic is a track and field meet held at Hayward Field on the campus of the University of Oregon in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Organized by the Oregon Track Club, it was previously one of the IAAF Grand Prix events, and ...

. On June 23, Cunningham jumped to win in

2017 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships The 2017 USA Track and Field Outdoor Championships were held at Hornet Stadium (Sacramento), Hornet Stadium on the campus of California State University, Sacramento in Sacramento, California, Sacramento, California. Organized by USA Track & Field ...

Sacramento State University California State University, Sacramento (CSUS, Sacramento State, or informally Sac State) is a public university in Sacramento, California, United States. Founded in 1947 as Sacramento State College, it is part of the California State Universit ...

. On July 9, 2017, Cunningham jumped to place 2nd at London

Müller Müller may refer to: Companies * Müller (company), a German multinational dairy company ** Müller Milk & Ingredients, a UK subsidiary of the German company * Müller (store), a German retail chain * GMD Müller, a Swiss aerial lift manufacturi ...

Anniversary Games. On July 21, 2017, Cunningham jumped to place 3rd at IAAF Diamond League 2017

Herculis The Herculis is an annual track and field meet at Stade Louis II in Fontvieille, Monaco. Previously one of the five IAAF Super Grand Prix events. Herculis is now part of the Diamond League. Editions World records Over the course of its histo ...

Fontvieille, Monaco Fontvieille (; ) is the southernmost ward in the Principality of Monaco. It was developed by Italian engineer Gianfranco Gilardini and designed by architect Manfredi Nicoletti, between the 1970s and the 1990s. History In contrast to the other ...

. On August 12, 2017, Cunningham jumped to place 10th at

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

. On February 18, 2018, Cunningham jumped to win third consecutive high jump indoor title and 4th US senior title at 2018 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships in

Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), also known as ABQ, Burque, the Duke City, and in the past 'the Q', is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Bernalillo County, New Mexico, Bernal ...

. On March 1, Cunningham jumped to place second behind World Champion Mariya Lasitskene in

2018 IAAF World Indoor Championships The 17th IAAF World Indoor Championships was held from 1 to 4 March 2018 in Birmingham, United Kingdom. This was the city's second hosting of the event as it previously did so in 2003 IAAF World Indoor Championships, 2003. Bidding process Birmin ...

Birmingham, United Kingdom Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

. On July 7, 2023, Vashti Cunningham claimed her 13th U.S. high jump title with a victory at the U.S. outdoor track and field championships in Eugene, Oregon.

Competition record

: Pan American junior championships record and world youth record

USA national championships and Olympic trials

, 2025 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships , Ocean Breeze Athl. Complex, New York, NY (USA) (i) , bgcolor=gold, 1st : American junior record : American junior outdoor record

References

External links

* * * * *
Vashti Cunningham
at the

Paris 2024 Summer Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad () and branded as Paris 2024, were an international multi-sport event held in France from 26 July to 11 August 2024, with several events started from 24 July. P ...

(archived
alternate link

Olympic hopeful high jumper sets sights on Rio
from National Public Radio
USA Indoor Track and Field Championships
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cunningham, Vashti Living people 1998 births Sportspeople from Las Vegas American female high jumpers Bishop Gorman High School alumni Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Olympics Olympic track and field athletes for the United States World Athletics Championships athletes for the United States World Athletics Championships medalists Track and field athletes from Nevada USA Indoor Track and Field Championships winners USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners World Athletics Indoor Championships winners Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Olympics 21st-century American sportswomen 21st-century African-American sportsmen Athletes (track and field) at the 2024 Summer Olympics