James Butler (born June 21, 1960) is an American former

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 ...

sprinter who specialized in the

200-meter dash The 200 metres, or 200-meter dash, is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 metre racetrack, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques is needed to successfully run the race. A slightl ...

. He was an NCAA champion and winner at the

Liberty Bell Classic The Liberty Bell Classic was a track and field athletics event organized by the Athletics Congress as part of the 1980 Summer Olympics boycott and held at Franklin Field at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia on July 16 and 17, 1980 ...

Olympic boycott event. He represented the United States at the 1987 IAAF World Indoor Championships and placed fifth. He set a 200 m best of 20.23 seconds in 1982.

College

Collegiately he ran for

Oklahoma State University Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

and was the school's first ever winner of the 200-meter dash at the NCAA Men's Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships, doing so in 1982 with a wind-assisted run of 20.07 seconds.

Olympics

Internationally he looked set to make his Olympic debut with a win at the 1980 United States Olympic Trials, but did not compete due to the U.S. Olympic Committee's boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, Russia. He was one of 461 athletes to receive a

Congressional Gold Medal The Congressional Gold Medal is an award bestowed by the United States Congress. It is Congress's highest expression of national appreciation for distinguished achievements and contributions by individuals or institutions. The congressional pract ...

instead. He ran at the

, an alternative meet for boycotting nations held in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

. He won the 200 m there, edging fellow American Fred Taylor by one hundredth of a second.

USA Outdoor Track and Field

Butler ran his lifetime personal record for the 200 m in 1982, crossing the line in

Provo, Utah Provo ( ) is the fourth-largest city in Utah, United States. It is south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front. Provo is the largest city and county seat of Utah County and is home to Brigham Young University (BYU). Provo lies between the ...

in 20.23 seconds. This ranked him as the fourth fastest athlete in the world that year. He was runner-up at the 1982 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships to Calvin Smith.James Butler
Track and Field Brinkster. Retrieved on 2016-04-09. At the end of that year he won the top level

Golden Gala Golden Gala is an annual track and field event normally held at the Olympic Stadium in Rome, Italy. Previously one of the IAAF Golden League events, it is now part of the Diamond League. Following the 2013 death of Italian sprinting legend Pie ...

meet in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. His season's best in 1983 came at the

national championships A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the best team, indi ...

, but the quality of the field had improved given that it was the selection meet for the inaugural

1983 World Championships in Athletics The 1st 1983 World Championships in Athletics were run under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations and were held at the Olympic Stadium in Helsinki, Finland between 7 and 14 August 1983. Summary The overall med ...

and he ended the race in sixth place.

International

Butler continued to run on the international circuit and was the world's eighth best 200 m sprinter in 1984 with a time of 20.31 seconds set in Rome. In his sole world level outing for the United States, he came fifth at the 1987 IAAF World Indoor Championships. He also placed third at the 1987 IAAF Grand Prix Final. In his final year of top level competition, in 1988, he set indoor bests of 6.55 seconds for the

60-meter dash 60 metres, or 60-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field. It is a championship event for indoor championships, normally dominated by the best outdoor 100 metres runners. At outdoor venues it is a rare distance, at least for senior at ...

and 20.64 seconds for the indoor 200 m – the latter time made him the third best runner indoors that season. He competed as a guest athlete at the Hungarian Indoor Championships and won their 60 m event.Hungarian Indoor Championships
GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2016-04-09. He ended his career after a failed attempt to qualify for the 1988 Olympics, as he took sixth at the 1988 United States Olympic Trials.

Personal records

100 metres The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been conteste ...

– 10.14 (1982) *

200 metres The 200 metres, or 200-meter dash, is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 metre racetrack, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques is needed to successfully run the race. A slightl ...

– 20.23 (1982) ;Indoors * 50 metres – 5.74 (1983) * 55 metres – 6.11 (1983) *

60 metres 60 metres, or 60-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field. It is a championship event for indoor championships, normally dominated by the best outdoor 100 metres runners. At outdoor venues it is a rare distance, at least for senior at ...

– 6.55 (1988) *

– 20.64 (1988) *

300 metres The 300 metres is an uncommon sprinting event in track and field competitions. All-time top 25 *+ = en route to 400 m performance *i = indoor performance *A = affected by altitude *OT = oversized track (> 200 m in circumference) *h = hand timi ...

– 32.92 (1986) *

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 ...

– 46.79 (1988) *All info from All-AthleticsJames Butler
All-Athletics. Retrieved on 2016-04-09.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Butler, James Living people 1960 births American male sprinters Oklahoma State Cowboys track and field athletes Congressional Gold Medal recipients