Tony Darden (born September 2, 1957) 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 ...

athlete, who competed in the sprints events during his career. He is best known for winning the men's 400-meter dash at the

1979 Pan American Games The 1979 Pan American Games, officially the VIII Pan American Games () and commonly known as San Juan 1979, were a multi-sport event governed by the Panam Sports Organization (PASO), and were held in San Juan, Puerto Rico, from July 1 to Jul ...

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John (disambiguation), Saint John, most commonly refers to: * San Juan, Puerto Rico * San Juan, Argentina * San Juan, Metro Manila, a highly urbanized city in the Philippines San Juan may also refer to: Places Arge ...

Track career

Darden had a very successful track career for his high school, Norristown High, Pennsylvania; for his university, Arizona State; and for his track club, Philadelphia Pioneers. At high school, Darden won multiple state championships and achieved national fame by recording national indoor records at 300 and 500 yards."Pennsylvania Track and Field Hall of Fame"
. Retrieved January 26, 2013. At Arizona State University, Darden was a key member of the track team, competing in the sprints and sprint relay, and helped the team to their first NCAA Championship in 1977. Also in 1977, Darden was a member of two Arizona State record-breaking relay teams. The first tied the 4x220 yards world best with a time of 1:21.7 in Austin, Texas on April 1 at the Texas Relays. The second broke the world record for the 4×200 metres with a time of 1:21.4 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on April 30 at the

Penn Relays The Penn Relays (officially The Penn Relay Carnival) is the oldest and largest track and field competition in the United States, hosted annually since April 21, 1895 by the University of Pennsylvania at Franklin Field in Philadelphia. In 2012 ...

. In 1979, Darden having finished second at the USA championships (see below) qualified for the

Pan American Games The Pan American Games, known as the Pan Am Games, is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas. It features thousands of athletes participating in competitions to win different summer sports. It is held among athletes from nations of th ...

. Willie Smith, as American No. 1, was expected to be the main rival to the legendary Cuban athlete

Alberto Juantorena Alberto Juantorena (born 3 December 1950) is a Cuban former runner. He is the only athlete to win both the 400 and 800 m Olympic titles, which he achieved in 1976. He was ranked as the world's best runner in the 400 m in 1974 and 1976–19 ...

. In the end a foot injury and a problem with a shoe put paid to his chances, and it was an inspired piece of running by Darden that meant it was he who was to beat Juantorena into second. Darden finished third in 400 m at the 1979 Athletics World Cup and anchored the United States 4 × 400 m relay team to victory. Darden received some criticism for his run in the individual event but ran a superb relay leg to redeem his reputation. At the 1981 Athletics World Cup, Darden again anchored the United States 4 × 400 m relay team to victory, in a time that was then the third fastest ever. Also in 1981, he 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 ...

title in the 400 metres event at the 1981 AAA Championships. Darden never ran in an Olympics. As a high-school student he reached the quarter-finals at the United States Olympic Trials in 1976. In 1980 though he finished fifth and so qualified for the 4 × 400 m relay squad but the United States boycotted the 1980 Olympics.The History of the United States Olympic Trials - Track & Field
R Hymans, USA Track & Field, 2008 Darden set his personal best (45.01) in the 400 metres on June 21, 1981, in

Sacramento Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's 2020 p ...

Later career

As of 2012, Darden was head coach for the Greater Norristown Police Athletic League track and field team. Darden is

USATF USA Track & Field (USATF) is a United States national governing body for the sports of track and field, cross country running, road running, and racewalking (known as the sport of athletics outside the US). The USATF was known between 1979 and 1 ...

level one certified coach. Between 2000 and 2004, Darden was a member of the Norristown Municipal Council and in 2004 Darden was Norristown Council President.

Rankings

Darden was ranked among the best in the US and the world in the 400 m sprint from 1977 to 1982, according to the votes of the experts of ''

Track and Field News ''Track & Field News'' is an American monthly sports magazine founded in 1948 by brothers Bert Nelson and Cordner Nelson, focused on the world of track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includ ...

''.

USA Championships

Darden was a very successful competitor at 400 m in the USA National Track and Field Championships between 1977 and 1984:

Accolades and awards

In 2007, Darden was inducted into the

'Wall of Fame'. Darden had already been inducted into the Penn Relays "Relays’ Wall of Fame" in 1994 as a member of the winning 1977 Arizona State University 4 × 400 m relay team. In 1989, Darden, along with the rest of the members of the 1977 sprint relay teams, was inducted into the Arizona State University Hall of Fame. In 1990, Darden was inducted into the Norristown Area School District Hall of Champions.Hall of Champions Inductees
Norristown Area School District.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Darden, Tony 1957 births Living people Track and field athletes from Pennsylvania Sportspeople from Norristown, Pennsylvania American male sprinters African-American track and field athletes Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 1979 Pan American Games Arizona State Sun Devils men's track and field athletes Medalists at the 1979 Pan American Games 21st-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen