James Butler (born June 21, 1960) is an American former

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 ...

sprinter who specialized in the

200-meter 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 slight ...

. He was an NCAA champion and winner at the

Liberty Bell Classic The Liberty Bell Classic was a track and field athletics event organized by the Athletics Congress as part of the 1980 Summer Olympics boycott and held at Franklin Field at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia on July 16 and 17, 19 ...

Olympic boycott event. He represented the United States at the

1987 IAAF World Indoor Championships The 1st IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics were held in Indianapolis, United States from March 6 to March 8, 1987. The championship had previously been known as the World Indoor Games, which were held once before changing the name. Bein ...

and placed fifth. He set a 200 m best of 20.23 seconds in 1982.

College

Collegiately he ran for

Oklahoma State University Oklahoma State University (informally Oklahoma State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Stillwater, Oklahoma, United States. The university was established in 1890 under the legislation of the Morrill Act. Originally known ...

and was the school's first ever winner of the 200-meter dash at the NCAA Men's Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships, doing so in 1982 with a wind-assisted run of 20.07 seconds.

Olympics

Internationally he looked set to make his Olympic debut with a win at the 1980 United States Olympic Trials, but did not compete due to the U.S. Olympic Committee's boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, Russia. He was one of 461 athletes to receive a

Congressional Gold Medal The Congressional Gold Medal is the oldest and highest civilian award in the United States, alongside the Presidential Medal of Freedom. It is bestowed by vote of the United States Congress, signed into law by the president. The Gold Medal exp ...

instead. He ran at the

, an alternative meet for boycotting nations held in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

. He won the 200 m there, edging fellow American Fred Taylor by one hundredth of a second.

USA Outdoor Track and Field

Butler ran his lifetime personal record for the 200 m in 1982, crossing the line in

Provo, Utah Provo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Utah County, Utah, United States. It is south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front, and lies between the cities of Orem, Utah, Orem to the north and Springville, Utah, Springville to the south ...

in 20.23 seconds. This ranked him as the fourth fastest athlete in the world that year. He was runner-up at the 1982 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships to

Calvin Smith Calvin Smith (born January 8, 1961) is a former sprint track and field athlete from the United States. He is a former world record holder in the 100-meter sprint with 9.93 seconds in 1983 and was twice world champion over 200 metres, in 1983 an ...

.James Butler
Track and Field Brinkster. Retrieved on 2016-04-09. At the end of that year he won the top level

Golden Gala Golden Gala is an annual Track and field, track and field event normally held at the Stadio Olimpico, Olympic Stadium in Rome, Italy. Previously one of the IAAF Golden League events, it is now part of the Diamond League. Following the 2013 deat ...

meet in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. His season's best in 1983 came at the

national championships A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or competition, contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the be ...

, but the quality of the field had improved given that it was the selection meet for the inaugural

1983 World Championships in Athletics The 1st World Championships in Athletics (; ) were run under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations and were held at the Olympic Stadium (Helsinki), Olympic Stadium in Helsinki, Finland between 7 and 14 August 1983 ...

and he ended the race in sixth place.

International

Butler continued to run on the international circuit and was the world's eighth best 200 m sprinter in 1984 with a time of 20.31 seconds set in Rome. In his sole world level outing for the United States, he came fifth at the

. He also placed third at the 1987 IAAF Grand Prix Final. In his final year of top level competition, in 1988, he set indoor bests of 6.55 seconds for the

60-meter dash 60 metres, or 60-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field. It is a championship event for indoor championships, normally dominated by the best outdoor 100 metres runners. At indoor events, the 60 metres is run on lanes set out in the mi ...

and 20.64 seconds for the indoor 200 m – the latter time made him the third best runner indoors that season. He competed as a guest athlete at the Hungarian Indoor Championships and won their 60 m event.Hungarian Indoor Championships
GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2016-04-09. He ended his career after a failed attempt to qualify for the 1988 Olympics, as he took sixth at the 1988 United States Olympic Trials.

Personal records

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 ...

– 10.14 (1982) *

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 ...

– 20.23 (1982) ;Indoors * 50 metres – 5.74 (1983) *

55 metres 55 metres is a sprint event in track and field. It is a relatively uncommon non-championship event for indoor track and field. The history of the event lies in the 60-yard dash, which is about 5 inches shorter than 55 metres. Since the 1960s alm ...

– 6.11 (1983) *

60 metres 60 metres, or 60-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field. It is a championship event for indoor championships, normally dominated by the best outdoor 100 metres runners. At indoor events, the 60 metres is run on lanes set out in the mi ...

– 6.55 (1988) *

– 20.64 (1988) *

300 metres The 300 metres is an uncommon (meaning not on an Olympic or World Championship program) sprinting event in track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contes ...

– 32.92 (1986) *

400 metres The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor running track, it is ...

– 46.79 (1988) *All info from All-AthleticsJames Butler
All-Athletics. Retrieved on 2016-04-09.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Butler, James Living people 1960 births American male sprinters Oklahoma State Cowboys track and field athletes Congressional Gold Medal recipients NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners 20th-century American sportsmen