Germaine Mason (20 January 1983 – 20 April 2017) was a Jamaican-born track and field athlete competing in high jump. In 2006, he switched sporting allegiance, and then represented Great Britain. As a Great Britain competitor, he won the silver medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics.
Biography Mason won silver and bronze medals at the World Junior Championships in 2000 and 2002 respectively, the latter event held in his hometown of Kingston. His first medal at senior level came at the 2003 Pan American Games in Santo Domingo, when he won a gold medal, having achieved a personal best jump of 2.34 metres. He finished fifth at the World Championships the same year.
The following seasons saw him drop to 2.25 m (2004) and 2.27 m (2005), but 2.25 m was enough to win a bronze medal at the 2004 IAAF World Indoor Championships. The medal was won jointly with Jaroslav Bába and Ştefan Vasilache.
Mason was eligible to represent Great Britain because his father David was born in London. Mason's mother persuaded him to switch allegiance, and Mason's change in nationality was ratified by athletics' governing body, the IAAF, in 2006.Germain Mason . Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2015-02-01.
Mason won a silver medal for Great Britain at the Beijing Olympics on 19 August 2008. He equalled his personal best of 2.34 m, beaten only by Russia's Andrey Silnov with 2.36 m. It was Great Britain's first track and field medal of the games.
Mason became the British high jump champion after winning the British Athletics Championships in 2009.
Death Mason died in a motorbike accident on 20 April 2017 at the age of 34. Upon returning from a soca party he was riding his motorbike when he crashed. His funeral was held at the Hagley Park Seventh-day Adventist Church in Kingston, Jamaica. His friend Usain Bolt was a pallbearer and dug the grave of Mason.
Achievements Representing 1999CARIFTA Games (U17)Fort-de-France, Martinique1sthigh jump2.03 m2000CARIFTA Games (U20)St. George's, Grenada, Grenada1sthigh jump2.12 mCAC Junior Championships (U20)San Juan, Puerto Rico1sthigh jump2.15 mWorld Junior ChampionshipsSantiago, Chile2ndhigh jump2.24 m2002CARIFTA Games (U20)Nassau, Bahamas2ndhigh jump2.16 mCAC Junior Championships (U20)Bridgetown, Barbados1sthigh jump2.23 mWorld Junior ChampionshipsKingston, Jamaica3rdhigh jump2.21 mCommonwealth GamesManchester, Great Britain5thhigh jump2.20 m2003World Indoor ChampionshipsBirmingham, Great Britain–high jumpNMPan American GamesSanto Domingo, Dominican Republic1sthigh jump2.34 mWorld ChampionshipsParis, France5thhigh jump2.29 m2004World Indoor ChampionshipsBudapest, Hungary3rdhigh jump2.25 mRepresenting 2006European ChampionshipsGothenburg, Sweden17th (q)high jump2.19 m2007World ChampionshipsOsaka, Japan27th (q)high jump2.19 m2008Olympic GamesBeijing, China2ndhigh jump2.34 m
References
External links
Obituary in The Independent by Marcus Williamson
Official website Management website