Elvin C. "Ducky" Drake (November 2, 1903 – December 23, 1988) was an American track and field coach and athletics trainer at the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California S ...

(UCLA). During his more than 60-year association with the university, he became a fixture and "father confessor" to many of the athletes he worked with. Drake was born in

Friend, Nebraska Friend is a city in Saline County, Nebraska, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 954. History The city is named for Charles E. Friend who homesteaded the land and initially named the community Friendville. He operated ...

, and played high school sports at

Fort Morgan, Colorado Fort Morgan is the home rule municipality city that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Morgan County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 11,597 at the 2020 United States Census. Fort Morgan is the principal ...

. He worked in

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at a lumber yard. Drake enrolled at UCLA in 1923 and earned three

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cross country running Cross country running is a sport in which teams and individuals run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain such as dirt or grass. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open cou ...

, while also becoming a member of Sigma Pi fraternity. In 1927, he became the first college graduate in his family. He was hired as an assistant track coach at his alma mater in 1929. Drake was the head trainer from 1942 to 1972 and the head track and field coach from 1947 to 1964, with a 107–48 record in track meets. Under his leadership, the UCLA Bruins won the 1956

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...

national outdoor title (the school's first track and field title), and he was named NCAA Track & Field Coach of the Year for that year. He coached decathletes

Rafer Johnson Rafer Lewis Johnson (August 18, 1934 – December 2, 2020) was an American decathlon, decathlete and film actor. He was the 1960 Olympic gold medalist in the decathlon, having won silver in 1956. He had previously won a gold in the 1955 Pan Amer ...

and C. K. Yang during the

1960 Summer Olympics The 1960 Summer Olympics ( it, Giochi Olimpici estivi del 1960), officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad ( it, Giochi della XVII Olimpiade) and commonly known as Rome 1960 ( it, Roma 1960), were an international multi-sport event held ...

, in which they won gold and silver respectively in one of the tensest duels in Olympic history. Close to legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden, he was the trainer for all of Wooden's teams over a span of 27 years. Drake died of a heart attack at the age of 85 at St. John's Hospital and Health Center in

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 U.S. Census population was 93,076. Santa Monica is a popular resort town, owing t ...

. He was survived by his wife Rose. They had no children. He is a member of the

National Track and Field Hall of Fame The National Track and Field Hall of Fame is a museum operated by The Armory Foundation in conjunction with USA Track & Field. It is located within the Armory Foundation (the former Fort Washington Avenue Armory) at 216 Fort Washington Avenue, ...

, the

UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame The UCLA Bruins are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Los Angeles. The Bruin men's and women's teams participate in NCAA Division I as part of the Pac-12 Conference and the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPS ...

(charter inductee), the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Hall of Fame (special inductee), the Mt. SAC Relays Hall of Fame and the

National Athletic Trainers' Association The National Athletic Trainers' Association (NATA) is the professional membership association for certified athletic trainers and others who support the athletic training profession. Founded in 1950, the NATA has grown to more than 43,000 member ...

Hall of Fame. Drake Stadium, the UCLA track stadium, was renamed in his honor in 1973. The UCLA basketball Elvin C. "Ducky" Drake Memorial Award for Competitive Spirit, Inspiration and Unselfish Contributions is also named after him.

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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Drake, Elvin C. 1903 births 1988 deaths American track and field coaches UCLA Bruins track and field coaches University of California, Los Angeles alumni People from Friend, Nebraska Track and field people from California