Loren C. Murchison (December 17, 1898 – June 11, 1979) was an American

athlete An athlete is most commonly a person who competes in one or more sports involving physical strength, speed, power, or endurance. Sometimes, the word "athlete" is used to refer specifically to sport of athletics competitors, i.e. including track ...

, double gold medal winner in 4 × 100 m

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 switc ...

at the

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...

Biography

Born in Farmersville, Texas, Loren Murchison was an AAU Champion in in 1920 and 1923 and in in 1918 and 1923. He also won the British

AAA Championships The AAA Championships was an annual track and field competition organised by the Amateur Athletic Association of England. It was the foremost domestic athletics event in the United Kingdom during its lifetime, despite the existence of the offi ...

in both and at the 1925 AAA Championships. At the

1920 Summer Olympics The 1920 Summer Olympics (; ; ), officially known as the Games of the VII Olympiad (; ; ) and commonly known as Antwerp 1920 (; Dutch language, Dutch and German language, German: ''Antwerpen 1920''), were an international multi-sport event held i ...

, Murchison finished fourth in 200 m and sixth in 100 m. He also ran the third leg in the gold medal winning United States 4 × 100 m relay team, which set a new

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 organizatio ...

of 42.2 s in the Olympic final. At the

1924 Summer Olympics The 1924 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the VIII Olympiad () and officially branded as Paris 1924, were an international multi-sport event held in Paris, France. The opening ceremony was held on 5 July, but some competitions had al ...

, Murchison was again sixth in 100 m and won his second Olympic gold medal as an opening leg in the world record (41.0 s) setting American 4 × 100 m relay team. Murchison was an outstanding indoor runner. He won 14 titles (9 individual and 5 in the relay) at the United States premier indoor athletics meet, the Millrose Games. He was also national indoor champion at the 60 y in 1919–20 and 1922–24, and 300 y in 1919–20 and 1923–24. Murchison was also a prolific breaker of records indoors. Amongst the world best times he equaled or broke are: * equaled 60 y best of 6.4 s in 1920, 1922 and 1923; * established new 60 y best of 6.2 s in 1923; * 50 m of 6.0 s in 1925; * 300 y of 31.2 s; * 220 y best of 22.4 s. It was such exploits that inspired Charley Paddock (1920 Olympic 100 m champion) to call Murchison "the greatest indoor sprinter of his generation and the finest starter of all-time. In 1925 Murchison was struck with

spinal meningitis Meningitis is acute or chronic inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, collectively called the meninges. The most common symptoms are fever, intense headache, vomiting and neck stiffness and occasionally ...

and paralyzed from the waist down for the rest of his life. A resident of Leisure Village in Lakewood Township, New Jersey, Murchison died at the age of 80 on June 11, 1979, at Point Pleasant Hospital in Point Pleasant, New Jersey.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Murchison, Loren 1898 births 1979 deaths American male sprinters Athletes (track and field) at the 1920 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1924 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field Sportspeople from Collin County, Texas Sportspeople from Lakewood Township, New Jersey People from Farmersville, Texas Track and field athletes from Texas Medalists at the 1924 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1920 Summer Olympics USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners USA Indoor Track and Field Championships winners People with paraplegia 20th-century American sportsmen