John "James" Alcorn Rector (June 22, 1884 – March 10, 1949) was an American athlete. He was the first Arkansas-born athlete to compete in the

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a multi ...

. While competing he was a

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with College admission ...

student and went there to train with Pop Lannigan.'' The News Leader'', Staunton, Virginia, December 26, 1930. James Rector was born in

Hot Springs, Arkansas Hot Springs is a resort city in the state of Arkansas and the county seat of Garland County. The city is located in the Ouachita Mountains among the U.S. Interior Highlands, and is set among several natural hot springs for which the city is ...

. He was the grandson of Arkansas

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polic ...

governor Henry Massey Rector and Mississippi Reconstruction governor

James Alcorn James Lusk Alcorn (November 4, 1816December 19, 1894) was a governor, and U.S. senator during the Reconstruction era in Mississippi. A Moderate Republican and Whiggish scalawag,Sansing, David G. (July 10, 2017)James Lusk Alcorn ''Mississippi En ...

. He won the

silver medal A silver medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of, or plated with, silver awarded to the second-place finisher, or runner-up, of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, e ...

in the 100 metres at the 1908 Summer Olympics, tying the Olympic record for the race (10.8 seconds at the time) during both the qualifying heats and the semifinals. He lost to Reggie Walker in the final, running the race in 10.9 seconds as Walker hit the 10.8 mark for his second time. Rector was not only a track star at Virginia, but was a star of the Virginia baseball and football teams. Rector was a prominent St. Louis, Missouri

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solici ...

for more than thirty years before retiring in Hot Springs.

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* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rector, James 1884 births 1949 deaths American male sprinters Athletes (track and field) at the 1908 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists for the United States in track and field Track and field athletes from Arkansas Sportspeople from Hot Springs, Arkansas Medalists at the 1908 Summer Olympics American people of English descent American people of Scotch-Irish descent