Jim Hines, who won two gold medals at the 1968 Mexico City Summer Olympics, passed away on Saturday, June 3 at the age of 76.
Hines was a trailblazing sprinter as the first man officially clocked at under 10 seconds in the 100-meter dash. He won gold in the 100-meter sprint with a World Record time of 9.95. He also won gold in the 4×100-meter relay that year, running anchor behind Charles Greene, Mel Pender and Ronnie Ray Smith. The quartet’s time of 38.24 also broke the World Record.
His passing was announced on WorldAthletics.org.
“World Athletics is deeply saddened to hear that legendary US sprinter Jim Hines died on Saturday (3) at the age of 76,” the statement said. “Along with being the 1968 Olympic 100m champion, Hines is best known for being the first man to break the 10-second barrier for the 100m officially.”
World Athletics noted that Hines’ World Record of 9.95 seconds “lasted 15 years – the longest of any men’s 100m world record in the fully automatic era – before it was finally broken by Calvin Smith in 1983 with 9.93.”
Hines was remembered fondly for his triumphs on the track and who he was upon news of his passing.
Following his career in track and field, Hines played professional football for three years, playing with the Miami Dolphins in 1968 and 1969 and the Kansas City Chiefs in 1970.
[WorldAthletics.org, Photo Credit: Olympics, YouTube]
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