Randy Lavelle Williams (born August 23, 1953) is an American athlete.

Education

In high school, Williams attended Edison High School in Fresno, California. He then attended the

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...

.USC OLYMPIANS: 1904–2004
USC Trojans Athletic Department, Accessed August 13, 2008.

Competition

At the CIF California State Meet in 1969 he finished third, behind future rival James McAlister, in 1970 he finished second behind future NFL star,

Lynn Swann Lynn Curtis Swann (born March 7, 1952) is an American former football player, broadcaster, politician, and athletic director, best known for his association with the University of Southern California and the Pittsburgh Steelers. He served on the ...

and in 1971, he won the meet in what would have clearly been a meet record, had it not been wind aided. Williams won the sprints at the 1987 Masters West Region Championship.

Olympics

Williams mainly competed in the

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 ...

, in which he won a gold medal at the 1972 Olympics and a silver medal in 1976. His 1972 winning jump of 8.34 m (27–4½) set the world junior record that stood for almost 40 years until it was improved by 1 cm by Sergey Morgunov on June 20, 2012. At the time it was the longest standing record on the books. Williams qualified for the 1980 U.S. Olympic team but was unable to compete due to the

1980 Summer Olympics boycott The 1980 Summer Olympics boycott was one part of a number of actions initiated by the United States to protest against the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. The Soviet Union, which hosted the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, and its allies later ...

. In 2007 he did receive one of 461

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 ...

s created especially for the spurned athletes.

Hall of Fame

In 2009, Williams was inducted into 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, ...

References

1953 births American male long jumpers Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field Olympic silver medalists for the United States in track and field Athletes (track and field) at the 1972 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1976 Summer Olympics University of Southern California alumni Sportspeople from Fresno, California Living people Track and field athletes from California Medalists at the 1976 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1972 Summer Olympics American masters athletes {{US-athletics-Olympic-medalist-stub