Harry J. "Doc" Huff (June 3, 1880 – May 29, 1964) was an American

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

athlete, coach, and college athletics administrator. He competed at the

1908 Summer Olympics The 1908 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the IV Olympiad and also known as London 1908) were an international multi-sport event held in London, England, from 27 April to 31 October 1908. The 1908 Games were originally schedu ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. Huff served as the

athletic director An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches a ...

and head track and field coach at

Grinnell College Grinnell College ( ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, United States. It was founded in 1846 when a group of Congregationalism in the United States, Congregationalis ...

Grinnell, Iowa Grinnell ( ) is a city in Poweshiek County, Iowa, United States. The population was 9,564 at the time of the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census. It is best known for being the home of Grinnell College, as well as being the location of the ...

from 1914 to 1926. He was the head track and field coach at the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States. Two branch campuses are in the Kansas City metropolitan area on the Kansas side: the university's medical school and hospital ...

from 1926 to 1929 and the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou or MU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri, United States. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Univers ...

from 1929 to 1935. Huff was born in

Cedar Township, Van Buren County, Iowa Cedar Township is a township in Van Buren County, Iowa, United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U. ...

to James K Polk Huff and Eleanor Virginia née: Sheldon Huff, and died in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...

. In the

100 metres 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 contested at ...

, Huff won his first round heat with a time of 11.4 seconds, one of the slower winning times. He dropped his time to 11.1 seconds in his semifinal race to finish second behind eventual silver medallist James Rector, who tied the Olympic record at 10.8 seconds. Huff also won his preliminary heat in the

200 metres 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 slight ...

with a time of 22.8 seconds. He came in last in his three-man semifinal race, running the distance in 23.0 seconds.

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* 1881 births 1964 deaths American male sprinters Grinnell Pioneers athletic directors Grinnell Pioneers track and field coaches Grinnell Pioneers men's track and field athletes Kansas Jayhawks track and field coaches Missouri Tigers track and field coaches Athletes (track and field) at the 1908 Summer Olympics Olympic track and field athletes for the United States USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners People from Van Buren County, Iowa Track and field athletes from Iowa Sports coaches from Iowa 20th-century American sportsmen {{US-sprint-athletics-bio-stub