By Samara Nehemiah
Long jumper and triple jumper Dennis Ivory was a member of the Maryland track and field team during one of the team's strongest eras. He holds the school and ACC record in the triple jump (55-3) and also holds multiple top-10 long jumps in the school record book.
“They were the best four years of my life,” Ivory said about his experiences competing at Maryland. “Being able to compete at the University of Maryland and get to travel and see a lot of new places and meet a lot of people.”
Ivory competed under coach Frank Costello alongside teammates John Davenport ('77), Greg Robertson ('79) and Renaldo Nehemiah ('81). He helped lead his team to three consecutive ACC Championships and a sixth place finish in the NCAA Indoor Championship in 1979. Ivory himself was an All-ACC long jumper and ACC champion in 1976, 1977 and 1978. He was ACC champion in the triple jump in 1977, 1978, and 1979. He was also earned All-American honors in the triple jump in 1979.
Growing up in Maryland, Dennis was brought to the University of Maryland by his high school coach who went to school and competed alongside coach Costello. “[Coach Costello] is like a father to me. He's one of the best coaches I've ever worked with.”
“Dennis Ivory was one of UMD's best track and field athletes of all time,” Costello said. “He was fun to be around, fun to coach, and a real team player. Dennis always worked hard and gave everything he had which made his so easy to coach.”
After graduating from Maryland in 1979 with an education degree, Ivory continued to jump competitively. “Originally when I left Maryland, I was getting ready for the 1980 Olympics, but the '80 Olympics were boycotted.”
He then moved to California for four years to teach and coach the Los Angeles Falcon Track and Field Team before returning to Maryland to continue to coach.
Dennis currently lives in Maryland and has worked as a security guard since he stopped coaching. He has five children, two boys and three girls. His oldest son recently graduated from Stanford. Two of his children are members of the Navy.
