Jack Davis (athlete)

Jack Wells Davis ( born September 11, 1930 in Amarillo, Texas, † July 20, 2012 in San Diego, California ) was an American track and field athlete.

Career

Jack Davis attended Hoover High in Glendale, California before he began studying at the University of Southern California. For this he took a 1951-1953 three NCAA titles in the 120 - yards hurdles and the 1953 title in the 220 yards hurdles.

Internationally, he drew attention to himself when he won the Olympic silver medal behind compatriot Harrison Dillard in the 1952 Olympics. For both a time of 13.7 seconds was measured, but Dillard had achieved as much better sprinters in the outlet a narrow lead. Davis won in 1953 and 1954 in the 120 - yard and 110- meter hurdles all races that he participated. At a height of 1.90 he had a competition weight of 70 kg.

After finishing his studies, he entered in 1954 in the United States Navy, where he remained until 1957. For the United States Information Agency, he traveled to South America and Africa, where he took also part in competitions. This period also saw a world record, he put up with the 13.4 seconds on June 22, 1956 in Bakersfield falls. Second in this run was Harrison Dillard 14.1 seconds.

In the final of the 1956 Olympic Games, the runners had to play against the wind. Nevertheless, the first two reached with 13.5 seconds an excellent time. The winner was Lee Calhoun with three hundredths of a second ahead of Jack Davis.

After just missing out on the two Olympic victories Jack Davis finished his career in 1957 and began working for a property developer. He was one of the founders of the Olympic Training Center in San Diego and was inducted into the National Track and Field Hall of Fame in 2004. Davis died on July 20, 2012 at Mercy Hospital in San Diego.