Robert Addison "Bobby" Poynter (born December 5, 1937) is an American retired sprinter. He ran collegiately for

San Jose State College San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a public university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the oldest public university on the West Coast and the founding campus of the California State University (CSU) sy ...

, where he was coached by Bud Winter. He was the runner up at the 1959 NCAA Championships in the 100 yard dash and

220 yard 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 ...

. In the 220, he lost to San Jose State teammate

Ray Norton Otis Ray Norton (born September 22, 1937 in Tulsa, Oklahoma) is a former American sprinter who competed in the 1960 Olympics in Rome. Track career After graduating high school in 1955, Norton initially went to Oakland City College staying f ...

. That same year he won a gold medal at the

Pan American Games The Pan American Games (also known colloquially as the Pan Am Games) is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas featuring summer sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The competition is held ...

as a member of the American 4x100 meters relay. During that 1959 season he was ranked #3 in the world in both the

100 meters 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 contest ...

and the

200 meters 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 ...

. While at Pasadena High School, he won the 220 at the

CIF California State Meet The CIF California State Meet is the annual championship track and field meet for the California Interscholastic Federation. The meet was started in 1915 for boys and 1974 for girls. Every athlete in every high school in California has a direc ...

in 1955 and 56. His 21.0 in 1956 was the state record. Those same years he placed third and second in the 100, beaten by Ken Dennis in 1955 (later defeating Dennis in the 220). He was the 1956

CIF Southern Section The California Interscholastic Federation-Southern Section (CIF-SS) is the governing body for high school athletics in most of Southern California and is the largest of the ten sections that comprise the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF ...

Athlete of the Year. In 1957, running for

Pasadena City College Pasadena City College (PCC) is a Public college, public community college in Pasadena, California. History Pasadena, California, Pasadena City College was founded in 1924 as Pasadena Junior College. From 1928 to 1953, it operated as a four- ...

, he won the California Community College title in the 220 and 100 runner up. After getting his master's degree at Cal Poly, he coached at Silver Creek High School and also

San Jose City College San José City College (SJCC) is a public community college in San Jose, California. Founded in 1921, SJCC is located in the West San Jose neighborhood of Fruitdale. History The college was founded in 1921, opening its doors to students in Sept ...

, taking his protégé

Millard Hampton Millard Frank Hampton Jr. (born July 8, 1956) is an American former athlete, winner of gold medal in 4 × 100 m relay and the individual silver medal in the 200 meters at the 1976 Summer Olympics. Born in Fresno, California, Millard Hampton was ...

to a 1976 Olympic gold medal and individual silver medal. He had a similar arrangement taking

Andre Phillips André Lamar Phillips (born September 5, 1959) is a retired American track and field athlete who is best known for winning the 400 metres hurdles gold medal at the 1988 Olympic Games. Phillips spent most of his career in the shadow of his idol, ...

to eventually achieving a 1988 gold medal. He was also decathlete

Bruce Jenner Caitlyn Marie Jenner (born William Bruce Jenner; October 28, 1949) is an American media personality and retired Olympic Games, Olympic Olympic medal, gold medal-winning Decathlon, decathlete. Jenner played college football for the Graceland ...

's sprint coach. More recently, he is sprint coach at

West Valley College West Valley College is a public community college in Saratoga, California. It is part of the California Community College system. History The college was founded as West Valley Junior College in 1963. It was to serve the footprint of the Campbell ...

.http://westvalley.edu/wvcsports/track-field/coaching-staff.html After USA failed to put an athlete into the final of the 2012 Olympics 400 meters, Poynter was asked for analysis:

References

1937 births Living people American male sprinters Athletes (track and field) at the 1959 Pan American Games Place of birth missing (living people) Pan American Games medalists in athletics (track and field) Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States Pasadena High School (California) alumni Medalists at the 1959 Pan American Games Track and field athletes from San Jose, California {{US-sprint-athletics-bio-stub