Brittany Reese in Ole Miss Uniform, property of University of Mississippi Athletics
Olympian Brittany Reese and Her Mississippi Blood
Born and raised in Gulfport, Mississippi, Brittany Reese has shown true Mississippi pride. The 2004 graduate of Gulfport High School always knew she was destined for greatness, but did she know she was destined to be the best in the world?
In high school Reese was breaking records, as a future Olympian does, and she became state champion in the long jump and triple jump. This grabbed the attention of surrounding colleges, but Reese decided to stay close to home and heart. She attended Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, where she exceled in her athletics and academics. Reese was multifaceted, and interestingly enough also played basketball for the community college and has since been inducted into their sports hall of fame.
With such success, Reese transferred to the University of Mississippi. While succeeding at the SEC level and training day in and day out, Reese made it to international competition. In 2009, Reese officially became a world champion by winning gold in the Berlin games. For the next five years, Reese was able to secure gold in a world championship matchup in long jump. In 2010, Reese won gold in the Doha World Indoor Championships. Next, she won gold in the 2011 Daegu World Championships. Jumping into 2012, she claimed gold again in the Istanbul World Indoor Championship and the 2012 London Olympic games. By 2013, Reese would claim her 4th Olympic gold medal in Moscow. Reese was able to win her 5th and final Olympic gold in the 2017 Olympic London games, and similarly won her last world championship gold in the 2016 Portland indoor games. With over 8 competitions where Mississippi’s Brittany Reese was first in the world, there were also three competitions where she won silver: 2016 Rio de Janeiro, 2018 Birmingham, and 2020 Toyko.
Reese wins on and off the field. She does not forget her roots and extends her personal philanthropy by giving back to Mississippi. In 2011, Reese donated 100 turkeys to homeless citizens and religious organizations in Gulfport, Mississippi for Thanksgiving. Similarly, Reese created the B. Reese Scholarship which is awarded annually to 1 male & 1 female student who has been accepted to a 2-year or 4-year college in conjunction with the Gulfport School District celebrating “Brittney Reese Day”.
In Mississippi, a legend was born.
