Frederick Morgan Taylor (April 17, 1903 – February 16, 1975) was an American
hurdler
Hurdling is the act of jumping over an obstacle at a high speed or in a sprint. In the early 19th century, hurdlers ran at and jumped over each hurdle (sometimes known as 'burgles'), landing on both feet and checking their forward motion. Today, ...
and the first athlete to win three Olympic medals in the 400 m hurdles. He was the flag bearer for the United States at his last Olympics in 1932.
[
In 1924, Taylor won the 400 m Olympic trials with a world best time of 52.6 s, which was accepted as a national record, but not as a world record. While winning the gold medal at the 1924 Olympics he clocked the same time, but knocked one hurdle, and the record was again not ratified by the ]International Association of Athletics Federations
World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation (from 1912 to 2001) and International Association of Athletics Federations (from 2001 to 2019, both abbreviated as the IAAF) is the international governing body fo ...
(IAAF). In 1925, he won his second AAU title in the 440 yd hurdles in a world best time of 53.8 s, but this record was discounted too. Finally the IAAF accepted his 400 m record of 52.0 s set at the 1928 Olympic trials.
While studying at Grinnell College
Grinnell College is a private liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, United States. It was founded in 1846 when a group of New England Congregationalists established the Trustees of Iowa College.
Grinnell has the fifth highest endowment-to-stu ...
, Taylor competed in both 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 eve ...
and football. He won the NCAA
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 an ...
220 yd hurdle title in 1927 and finished second in the long jump in 1925. After graduating he worked as a salesman for the ''Chicago Tribune
The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television a ...
'' and then as a teacher and athletics coach. His son F. Morgan Taylor Jr. also competed in track and field as a long jump
The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a ...
er.[
]
References
External links
Hickok Sports History
{{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, Morgan
1903 births
1975 deaths
Sportspeople from Sioux City, Iowa
Track and field athletes from Iowa
Grinnell College alumni
American male hurdlers
Athletes (track and field) at the 1924 Summer Olympics
Athletes (track and field) at the 1928 Summer Olympics
Athletes (track and field) at the 1932 Summer Olympics
Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field
Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in track and field
Sports world record setters
Medalists at the 1932 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 1928 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 1924 Summer Olympics