Former American sprinter Bobby Joe Morrow, triple Olympic champion at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics in 100m, 200m and 4X100m, died at the age of 84.
The San Benito, Texas school district, whose football stadium is named after the former sprinter, expressed condolences on its Facebook page on Saturday, noting that Morrow's legacy will be " forever present " in the city. Before becoming a sprinter, Bobby Joe Morrow had played American football for the school in San Benito. Abilene Christian University, where Morrow studied, also paid tribute to the former athlete on his Facebook page.
Gold over 100m, 200m and 4x100m
In Melbourne in 1956, Morrow joined his compatriot Jesse Owens, the only man then to have won gold in 100m, 200m and 4X100m in a single edition of the Olympic Games. The feat was subsequently reissued by the American Carl Lewis (gold medalist also in long jump in 1984) and the Jamaican Usain Bolt.
In 1956, Morrow was named Sportsman of the Year by Sports Illustrated magazine, ahead of baseball player Mickey Mantle and boxer Floyd Patterson. Morrow retired from athletics in 1958, before making a short-lived return in 1960 to try in vain to qualify for the Olympic Games in Rome.
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