Calvin Smith (born January 8, 1961) is a former

sprint Sprint may refer to: Aerospace *Spring WS202 Sprint, a Canadian aircraft design *Sprint (missile), an anti-ballistic missile Automotive and motorcycle *Alfa Romeo Sprint, automobile produced by Alfa Romeo between 1976 and 1989 *Chevrolet Sprint, ...

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 ...

athlete from the United States. He is a former

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book '' Guinness World Records'' and other world records organizati ...

holder in the 100-meter sprint with 9.93 seconds in 1983 and was twice

world champion A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

over 200 metres, in 1983 and 1987. He became Olympic champion in the 4x100-meter relay in 1984. He was born in Bolton, Mississippi.

Background

Smith was brought up in Bolton, Mississippi and attended Sumner Hill High School in

Clinton, Mississippi Clinton is a city in Hinds County, Mississippi, United States. Situated in the Jackson metropolitan area, it is the tenth largest city in Mississippi. The population was 28,100 at the 2020 United States census. History Founded in 1823, Clint ...

. Smith had a dazzling collegiate career at the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and largest of the publi ...

. Smith set the 100 metre world record on July 3, 1983 at the

U.S. Olympic Festival The U.S. Olympic Festival was a junior multi-sport event held in the United States by the United States Olympic Committee in the years between the Olympic Games. It was started in 1978 as an American counterpart to the communist Spartakiad – a si ...

Colorado Springs Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...

, with a run of 9.93 seconds. In doing so, he broke the previous record set by Jim Hines, which had lasted for almost 15 years. Both Hines' and Smith's records were set at high altitude. At the inaugural Athletics

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

in 1983, Smith claimed gold medals in the 200 m and the 4x100-meters

relay A relay Electromechanical relay schematic showing a control coil, four pairs of normally open and one pair of normally closed contacts An automotive-style miniature relay with the dust cover taken off A relay is an electrically operated swit ...

(which the U.S. team won in world record time), as well as a silver medal behind Lewis in the 100 meters. August 1983 also saw Smith become the first athlete to run under 10 seconds (9.97) for the 100 m and under 20 seconds (19.99) for the 200 meters in the same evening in Zurich, Switzerland. At the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, Smith became champion as part of the U.S. 4x100-meters relay team, again establishing a new world record in this event. At the 1987 World Championships, Smith successfully defended his 200-meter title. (At that time, the World Championships were held once every four years, whereas since 1991 they are held every two years.) At the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...

in Seoul, Smith was involved in the most controversial Olympic 100 meters final of all time and ended up in third position (after the initial winner, Ben Johnson, was disqualified: SEE below). Smith missed out on what seemed like a likely win in the 4x100-meters relay in Seoul because the U.S. team did not reach the final following a disqualification for passing the baton outside the legal area. Smith continued to run for the U.S. national team into the 1990s. In the later years of his career, he was named captain of the U.S. track and field team at major events including the Olympic Games and World Championships.

1988 Olympics

Ben Johnson of Canada crossed the line first, with Lewis second,

Linford Christie Linford Cicero Christie (born 2 April 1960) is a Jamaican-born British former sprinter. He is the only British man to have won gold medals in the 100 metres at all four major competitions open to British athletes: the Olympic Games, the Worl ...

of Great Britain third, and Smith fourth. When Johnson tested positive for

anabolic steroids Anabolic steroids, also known more properly as anabolic–androgenic steroids (AAS), are steroidal androgens that include natural androgens like testosterone as well as synthetic androgens that are structurally related and have similar effects t ...

and was stripped of his title, Smith was upgraded to third position. Johnson was not the only participant whose success was questioned: Lewis had tested positive at the

Olympic Trials Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...

for

pseudoephedrine Pseudoephedrine (PSE) is a sympathomimetic drug of the phenethylamine and amphetamine chemical classes. It may be used as a nasal/sinus decongestant, as a stimulant, or as a wakefulness-promoting agent in higher doses. It was first charac ...

ephedrine Ephedrine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is often used to prevent low blood pressure during anesthesia. It has also been used for asthma, narcolepsy, and obesity but is not the preferred treatment. It is of unclear benefit in n ...

and

phenylpropanolamine Phenylpropanolamine (PPA) is a sympathomimetic agent which is used as a decongestant and appetite suppressant. It was commonly used in prescription and over-the-counter cough and cold preparations. In veterinary medicine, it is used to cont ...

. Lewis defended himself, claiming that he had accidentally consumed the banned substances. After the supplements that he had taken were analyzed to prove his claims, the USOC accepted his claim of inadvertent use, since a dietary supplement he ingested was found to contain "Ma huang", the Chinese name for Ephedra (ephedrine is known to help weight loss). Fellow Santa Monica Track Club teammates

Joe DeLoach Joseph ("Joe") Nathaniel DeLoach (born June 5, 1967) is a former American sprinter; the 1988 Olympic champion in the 200 m. Born in Bay City, Texas into a family with 11 sisters and one brother, DeLoach enjoyed running at a young age and desired ...

and

Floyd Heard Floyd Wayne Heard (born March 24, 1966, in West Point, Mississippi) is a retired track and field sprinter from the United States, best known for setting the 1986 world's best year performance in the men's 200 m. He did so on 7 July 1986 at a m ...

were also found to have the same banned stimulants in their systems, and were cleared to compete for the same reason. The highest level of the stimulants Lewis recorded was 6 ppm, which was regarded as a positive test in 1988 but is now regarded as negative test. The acceptable level has been raised to ten parts per million for ephedrine and twenty-five parts per million for other substances.Wallechinsky and Loucky, The Complete Book of the Olympics (2012 edition), page 61 According to the IOC rules at the time, positive tests with levels lower than 10 ppm were cause of further investigation but not immediate ban. Neal Benowitz, a professor of medicine at UC San Francisco who is an expert on ephedrine and other stimulants, agreed that "These evelsare what you'd see from someone taking cold or allergy medicines and are unlikely to have any effect on performance." Christie was found to have

metabolite In biochemistry, a metabolite is an intermediate or end product of metabolism. The term is usually used for small molecules. Metabolites have various functions, including fuel, structure, signaling, stimulatory and inhibitory effects on enzymes, ...

s of pseudoephedrine in his urine after a 200m heat at the same Olympics, but was later cleared of any wrongdoing. Of the finalists, only sixth

Robson da Silva Robson Caetano da Silva (born September 4, 1964 in Rio de Janeiro) is a Brazilian sprinter. He participated in four consecutive Olympic Summer Games (1984, 1988, 1992, 1996) and won the bronze medal over 200 metres in the 1988 Seoul Olympics a ...

and former 100 meter world record holder and eventual Olympic third over the distance, Calvin Smith never failed a drug test during their career. Smith later said: "I should have been the gold medalist."

Personal life

Smith is married to Melanie, whom he met at college, and has two children, a daughter Brittney and a son

Calvin Smith Jr. Calvin Smith Jr. (born December 10, 1987) is an American athlete who specialises in the 200m and 400m. He is the son of former world record-holder, world champion, Olympic medalist and National Track & Field Hall of Famer, Calvin Smith Sr. He is ...

Smith retired from athletics in 1996 and was then for two years an assistant coach at the

. He then moved with his family to

Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough C ...

where he has pursued a variety of careers. He is currently working for a non-profit agency that provides people with medical assistance.

International competitions

Personal bests

Smith's 19.99 run, made him the second man in history to achieve both a sub-10 second 100 m and a sub-20 second 200 m. Carl Lewis having achieved the feat 66 days earlier. *All information taken from IAAF Profile.

Rankings

Smith was ranked among the best in the USA and the world in both the 100 and 200 m sprint events from 1980 to 1993, according to the votes of the experts of ''

Track and Field News ''Track & Field News'' is an American monthly sports magazine founded in 1948 by brothers Bert Nelson and Cordner Nelson, focused on the world of track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on runnin ...

''.

Records and World Bests

Smith achieved the following world records and world best times during his illustrious career:Progression of IAAF World Records 2011 Edition, Editor Imre Matrahazi, IAAF Athletics, p 521-522. * world record of 9.93 s at the United States Air Force Academy on 3 July 1983. * world low-altitude best time of 9.97 s in Zurich on 24 August 1983. * world record at the 4 × 100 m relay in Helsinki on the 10 August 1983. * world record in the 4 × 100 m relay in Los Angeles on 11 August 1984.

Accolades

In 2007, Smith was inducted into the United States Track and Field Hall of Fame. In 2014, Smith was inducted into the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame. In 2016, Smith was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame.

References

External links

* * *
Calvin Smith
at Run-Down.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Calvin 1961 births Living people People from Bolton, Mississippi Track and field athletes from Mississippi American male sprinters Athletes (track and field) at the 1984 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1988 Summer Olympics Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in track and field Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field University of Alabama alumni Alabama Crimson Tide men's track and field athletes World record setters in athletics (track and field) World Athletics Championships medalists World Athletics Championships athletes for the United States Medalists at the 1988 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1984 Summer Olympics Universiade medalists in athletics (track and field) Universiade gold medalists for the United States Universiade silver medalists for the United States World Athletics Championships winners Medalists at the 1981 Summer Universiade