Jim Golliday
Jim Golliday was a sprinter who was considered the best at 100 yards/meters in the world in 1951 and 1955.
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American |
| Born | April 23, 1931 Sacramento Ca, United States |
| Died | April 10, 1971 Downey, Il, United States |
| Height | 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)[1] |
| Weight | 76 kg (168 lb)[1] |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Running |
| Event(s) | 100 meters, 200 meters |
| Achievements and titles | |
| Personal best(s) | 100 y: 9.3 s, WR= (Evanston, USA; 14/03/1955)[2] |
In 1951 he was the United States 100 yards champion.
In 1955 he equalled the then world record for the 100 yards.
Career
Originally a champion school football player at Wendell Phillips High School in Chicago, Golliday did not take track and field seriously until his senior year in 1949, winning the Illinois school's 100 yard title.[3]
As a student at Northwestern University, Golliday was USA champion in the 100 yard sprint in 1951.[3][4]
He was considered the favourite for the 100 metres title at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics[5] but injury denied him a chance to compete.[6][7]
An impressive win in the 1952 NCAA 100 yards event showed he was in good early season form (10.4 s into a stiff wind[1]). However, the recurrence of a muscle injury suffered in a semi-final of the 1952 AAU meet meant that he hobbled out of his heat at the 1952 US Olympic Trials.[6] Lindy Remigino, the winner of 100 metres title at the 1952 Olympics, magnanimously stated that "of course, Jimmy Golliday was the favourite in the trials. I think he was the fastest of us all".[5]
In 1952 he entered the United States Army, and competed on service teams in Europe, before returning to the United States and Northwestern University in 1954.[3][8][9]
In 1955, he equalled the world record for the 100 yards at 9.3 seconds.[8][10]
In 1956, he set an indoors world record for the 60 yards dash.,[11][12] but injury again denied him a chance to compete at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics.[6] He trailed in last in his semi-final of the 100 metres due to a muscle injury - another occurrence of the type of injury that plagued him throughout his career.[13]
After retirement, he is reported to have lived in California selling insurance, before returning to Chicago because of ill health.[14]
He died in 1971, aged only 39. The cause of death was listed as pneumonia, a condition he suffered as a complication following surgery for ulcers at Downey Veterans Hospital in Illinois.[14]
World rankings
Golliday was voted by the experts at Track and Field News to be ranked among the best in the US and the world in the 100 yards/meters sprint event in the period from 1951 to 1955.[15][16]
| Year | World rank | US rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1951 | 1st | 1st |
| 1952 | 2nd | 2nd |
| 1953 | 7th | 5th |
| 1954 | 3rd | 2nd |
| 1955 | 1st | 1st |
References
- E L Quercetani & G Pallicca, A World History of Sprint Racing 1850-2005, p 74
- E L Quercetani & G Pallicca, A World History of Sprint Racing 1850-2005, p 288.
- https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1368&dat=19550814&id=RUYxAAAAIBAJ&sjid=6w8EAAAAIBAJ&pg=6021,7084496, Milwaukee Sentinel, August 14, 1955
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2013-06-09. Retrieved 2012-06-17.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) A History Of The Results Of The National Track & Field Championships Of The USA From 1876 Through 2003, Track and Field News, Retrieved 3 February 2012
- Duncanson N, The Fastest Men on Earth, p. 112
- http://www.legacy.usatf.org/statistics/champions/OlympicTrials/HistoryOfTheOlympicTrials.pdf The History of the United States Olympic Trials - Track & Field, R Hymans, USA Track & Field, 2008
- "The Milwaukee Journal - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com. Retrieved 2016-04-11.
- "The Sunday News Journal - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com. Retrieved 2016-04-11.
- Company, Johnson Publishing (1954-06-10). Jet. Johnson Publishing Company.
- Company, Johnson Publishing (1955-05-26). Jet. Johnson Publishing Company.
- "The Milwaukee Journal - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com. Retrieved 2016-04-11.
- "The Age - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com. Retrieved 2016-04-11.
- http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1132039/3/index.htm Sports Illustrated, 2 July 1956, Retrieved 9 February 2012.
- https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1499&dat=19710413&id=Yh8qAAAAIBAJ&sjid=gSgEAAAAIBAJ&pg=7267,1767469
- "World Rankings Index--Men's 100 meters" (PDF). Track and Field News. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-06-09. Retrieved 2012-02-05.
- "U.S. Rankings Index--Men's 100 meters" (PDF). Track and Field News. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-06-09. Retrieved 2012-02-05.
Further reading
- Duncanson, Neil, "The Fastest Men on Earth", Andre Deutsch, 2011.
- R L Quercetani & G Pallicca, "A World History of Sprint Racing 1850-2005", SEP Editrice Srl, 2006.