Fred Sowerby (''Frederick Oliver Newgent Sowerby;'' born December 11, 1948) is a

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

athlete from

Antigua and Barbuda Antigua and Barbuda (, ) is a sovereign country in the West Indies. It lies at the juncture of the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean in the Leeward Islands part of the Lesser Antilles, at 17°N latitude. The country consists of two maj ...

, known primarily for running the

400 metres The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics (sport), athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor runn ...

Biography

At the

1976 Summer Olympics Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phi ...

, he was eliminated by finishing seventh in the quarterfinals while running more than two seconds slower than his personal best of 45.6, set earlier that year. He also anchored his team, finishing last in their qualifying round. Sowerby still holds the Antiguan and Barbudan national records in the 400 metres, and

400 metres hurdles The 400 metres hurdles is a track and field hurdling event. The event has been on the Olympic athletics programme since 1900 for men and since 1984 for women. On a standard outdoor track, 400 metres is the length of the inside lane, once a ...

. Sowerby became the first ever flag bearer for Antigua and Barbuda when he carried the flag in the 1976 opening ceremony. Sowerby is also a three-time champion in the now defunct 600 yard dash at the

USA Indoor Track and Field Championships The USA Indoor Track and Field Championships is an annual indoor track and field competition organized by USA Track & Field, which serves as the American national championships for the sport. In years which feature a World Indoor Championships in ...

. Sowerby is a 1973 graduate of

Murray State University Murray State University (MSU) is a public university in Murray, Kentucky. In addition to the main campus in Calloway County in southwestern Kentucky, Murray State operates extended campuses offering upper level and graduate courses in Paducah, H ...

, where he was elected to the Athletic Hall of Fame in 1986. Sowerby, had a successful career as head track and field coach of

Delaware State University Delaware State University (DSU or Del State) is a public historically black land-grant research university in Dover, Delaware. DSU also has two satellite campuses: one in Wilmington and one in Georgetown. The university encompasses four col ...

, receiving several Coach of the year awards. He then relocated to his Alma Mater,

, where he coached the track teams to several victories until 1993. After moving to

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

, where he was an assistant coach for the

University of Nevada, Las Vegas The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a public land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the University of Nevada from 1957 to 1969. It includes the S ...

, Sowerby has continued to run in

Masters athletics Masters athletics is a class of the sport of athletics for athletes of over 35 years of age. The events include track and field, road running and cross country running. Competitors are bracketed into five-year age groups (which promotes fair comp ...

wearing the United States uniform, setting the

World Masters Athletics World Masters Athletics (WMA) is the worldwide governing body for the sport of masters athletics – which includes track and field, cross country, and road running events – as participated by people over 35 years of age. As the need became ap ...

World Record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...

in the M45 and M50 age divisions in 1994 and 1999 respectively. Sowerby also still holds the World M45 Record for the Indoor 400, set in 1994. WMA Indoor Records Sowerby currently is retired from collegiate athletics although he coaches track and is a substitute teacher at Hopkinsville High School and lives in Hopkinsville, Kentucky with his wife, Carolyn. He has six children: Brian, Vaedra, Fred, Jr., LaTonya, Terrance, and Stephon.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sowerby, Fred 1948 births Living people Antigua and Barbuda male hurdlers Antigua and Barbuda male sprinters Athletes (track and field) at the 1976 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes for Antigua and Barbuda Athletes (track and field) at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1978 Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1979 Pan American Games Commonwealth Games competitors for Antigua and Barbuda Pan American Games competitors for Antigua and Barbuda Antigua and Barbuda masters athletes Murray State University alumni World record holders in masters athletics Antigua and Barbuda emigrants to the United States Murray State Racers men's track and field athletes