Percy Morris Beard (January 26, 1908 – March 27, 1990) was an American college and international

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 who specialized in the high hurdles event, and won an

Olympic 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 ...

silver medal. Beard later became a nationally prominent college track and field coach at the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...

Athletic career

Percy Beard was born in

Hardinsburg, Kentucky Hardinsburg is a list of Kentucky cities, home rule-class city in Breckinridge County, Kentucky, Breckinridge County, Kentucky, in the United States. It is the county seat, seat of its county. The population was 2,343 at the 2010 United States ...

in 1908. He became a world-class

hurdler Hurdling is the act of jumping over an obstacle at a high speed or in a sprint. In the early 19th century, hurdlers ran at and jumped over each hurdle (sometimes known as 'burgles'), landing on both feet and checking their forward motion. Today ...

Alabama Polytechnic Institute Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a public land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 26,800 undergraduate students, over 6,100 post-graduate students, and a total enrollment of more than 34,000 students ...

(now

Auburn University Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 26,800 undergraduate students, over 6,100 post-graduate students, and a tota ...

) in

Auburn, Alabama Auburn is a city in Lee County, Alabama, United States. It is the largest city in eastern Alabama. The population was 76,143 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is a principal city of the Auburn metropolitan area, Alabama, Aubu ...

. After graduating from Auburn with a bachelor's degree in

civil engineering Civil engineering is a regulation and licensure in engineering, professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads ...

in 1929, he later competed for the

New York Athletic Club The New York Athletic Club is a Gentlemen's club, private social club and athletic club in New York (state), New York state. Founded in 1868, the club has approximately 8,600 members and two facilities: the City House, located at 180 Central Pa ...

Amateur Athletic Union The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It h ...

(AAU) competition. He set a world record of 14.2 seconds in the 120-yard high hurdles in 1931 and tied the record again in 1934. A seven-time national AAU high hurdles champion, Beard won the silver medal in the 110-meter high hurdles event at the 1932 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles, finishing second behind U.S. teammate George Saling.

Coaching career

Following his competition running career, Beard later became the head coach of the

Florida Gators track and field The Florida Gators track and field program represents the University of Florida in the sport of track and field. The program includes separate men's and women's teams, both of which compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic As ...

at the

in Gainesville, Florida, serving from 1937 to 1964.
2010 University of Florida Track & Field Media Guide
'', University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 136–137 (2009). Retrieved April 26, 2011. Under Beard, the Gators won the

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central United States, South Central and Southeastern United States. Its 16 members in ...

(SEC) outdoor track and field championship twice and were the runners-up four times. While he was the Gators' head coach, he founded the Florida Relays in 1939, which became one of the country's top collegiate track and field events. He used his Auburn civil engineering background to develop all-weather running tracks and unveiled the first full-scale all-weather track at the 1959 Florida Relays.USTFCCCA Hall of Fame, Special Inductee
Percy Beard
Retrieved April 15, 2010.

Legacy and honors

Beard was a member of the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Hall of Fame, and was elected to the United States

National Track and Field Hall of Fame National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

in 1981. The University of Florida honored Beard by naming its track and field facility, Percy Beard Track, for him in 1978. He was inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as an "honorary letter winner" in 1976. Nine Named to UF Hall of Fame
" ''St. Petersburg Times'', p. 3C (April 24, 1976). Retrieved July 23, 2011. Beard died in Gainesville in 1990; he was 82 years old.
" ''The New York Times'' (March 29, 1990). Retrieved April 15, 2010. He was survived by his wife Sara, and their three sons.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beard, Percy 1908 births 1990 deaths People from Hardinsburg, Kentucky Sportspeople from Kentucky American male hurdlers Olympic silver medalists for the United States in track and field Athletes (track and field) at the 1932 Summer Olympics Auburn Tigers men's track and field athletes Florida Gators track and field coaches Medalists at the 1932 Summer Olympics 20th-century American sportsmen

Athletic career

Coaching career

Legacy and honors

See also

References