7291
Jackie Joyner-Kersee
September 24th 1988
Olympic Games
Seoul, South Korea
Jackie Joyner-Kersee, a world-class long jumper, had not lost a heptathlon since missing out on the gold at the 1984 Olympics.
She was in prime form, too, having broken her own world record by 57 points at the US Olympic Trials. But she hurt a knee in the high jump, the second event, in Seoul and there were fears that she might not finish the event, let alone win it — or set a world record.
Yet she began the second day by breaking the Olympic record for the long jump with a mighty 7.27m and, after running 2:08.51 for the final event, the 800m, she'd racked up a new world record of 7291 — 76 better than her previous mark.