Jeff Henderson was hired to the track and field staff in August of 2024. Henderson, who won Olympic Gold in the long jump at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games for Team USA, will coach WKU's sprints, jumps and hurdles group.
"We are excited to welcome Coach Henderson to our program," Chumbley said. "He will be an outstanding addition to our staff. He is obviously a little more jumps-heavy with experience, but you don't get there without a great sprint background. The team is as excited as the staff is to get him on campus and get started."
Henderson spent last season at Arkansas Little Rock, helping the men to both the indoor and outdoor Ohio Valley Conference titles. A record eight athletes qualified for NCAA West Prelims for Little Rock last season.
"I am truly honored to join Coach Chumbley's staff and the WKU Track & Field program," Henderson said. "The opportunity to work with a dedicated team and contribute to the success and growth of our athletes is a privilege. I am excited to bring my years of experience to Western Kentucky University and committed to making this program the best in the nation."
A 2012 graduate of Stillman College, Henderson is an Olympic Gold medalist and has won the long jump at U.S. Championships three times (2014, 2016, 2018). He also earned a silver medal at the World Championships in Doha in 2019. He has been a member of Team USA for four World Championships. At the 2015 Pan American games, Henderson won gold in the long jump after recording a personal best of 8.58m.
Henderson is a member of the Stillman College Hall of Fame, as well as the SIAC (Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) Hall of Fame. He won two NCAA Division II national championships during his career (2013 long jump, 2013 100m) at Stillman and was named the SIAC West Division Track Athlete of the Year, and Field Athlete of the Year, in 2013.
A native of North Little Rock, Arkansas, Henderson set the Arkansas High School state record in the triple jump and decathlon 100m. He won five national championships at Hinds Community College before transferring to Stillman.
At Hinds CC, Henderson became the NJCAA Division 1 2008 indoor national champion (long jump), 2008 outdoor national champion (long jump, 100m), and 2009 outdoor national champion (long jump and 4x100 meter relay team).
After finishing second in the long jump 7.94m at the 2010 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships, Henderson competed at the 2010 IAAF World Indoor Championships, where he finished in 20th place with a 7.64m jump.
At the 2013 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, Henderson won the silver medal in the long jump with a 8.22m jump and represented the United States at the 2013 World Championships in Moscow, Russia. Henderson competed in the long jump at the 2014 IAAF World Indoor Championships.
At the 2014 adidas Grand Prix, Henderson set a new meet record in the men's long jump, leaping 8.33m. Henderson set a stadium long jump and personal record of 8.43m at the 2014 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Sacramento, California, taking first place in the event. He also jumped 8.52m, however it was wind-aided at +3.5 m/s.
At the 2015 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, Henderson jumped 8.44m to earn a silver medal. At the 2015 Pan Am Games, he won with a leap of 8.52m. At the 2015 World Championships, he jumped 8.36m in the prelim to advance to the final and jumped 7.95m in the final to place eighth.
At the 2016 United States Olympic Trials, Henderson took first place in the long jump with 8.58m and took first place with a 8.38m leap to edge past Luvo Manyonga (8.37 m) of South Africa by one centimeter in the long jump at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Henderson jumped 8.28m to place fifth in the long jump at the 2017 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships to qualify for the 2017 IAAF World Championships where he placed 17th jumping 7.84m.
Henderson jumped 8.10m to place first in the long jump at the 2018 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships to qualify for the 2018 IAAF Continental Cup where he placed third jumping 7.98m. This result helped the U.S. team to win the global challenge. At the 2018 IAAF Diamond League Final, he jumped 8.11m to place fifth.
