Burrell’s 100m record earns him USATF Throwback Athlete of the Week honors

INDIANAPOLIS -- Leroy Burrell (Houston, Texas) set a world record in the men’s 100m on June 14, 1990 and was voted by fans as winner of the twelfth USATF Throwback Athlete of the Week award. In the absence of competition during the Covid-19 pandemic, we are taking a weekly look back at some of the great efforts by American track and field athletes through the years.
 
Burrell, a two-time Olympic gold medalist in the 4x100m relay and the 1991 World Championships silver medalist at 100m, blazed to a 9.90 at the TAC Championships in Downing Stadium on Randall’s Island in New York City to trim .02 seconds off the previous WR set at the ‘88 Games by Carl Lewis. Lewis reclaimed the record at the ‘91 Worlds in Tokyo before Burrell ran 9.85 at Lausanne in ‘94 for his second career dash WR.
 
After retiring from competition, Burrell became head coach at his alma mater, the University of Houston, where he continues to direct one of the nation’s top-ranked collegiate programs. He was inducted into the National Track & Field Hall of Fame in 2017.
 
Other historical performances of note from the June 8-14 period in USATF history:
 

• June 8 — Abel Kiviat World record in men’s 1,500m, 3:55 4/5 at Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1912
• June 9 — Valerie Brisco-Hooks American record in women’s 400m, 49.83 at San Jose, California in 1984
• June 10 — Jodi Anderson American record in women’s long jump, 6.89m/22-7.5 at Westwood, California in 1978
• June 11 — Ralph Metcalfe World record in men’s 100m, 10.2 at Chicago, Illinois in 1932
• June 12 — Kate Schmidt American record in women’s javelin, 66.52m/218-3 at Westwood, California in 1976
• June 13 — DeHart Hubbard World record in men’s long jump 7.89m/25-10.75 at Chicago, Illinois in 1925

 
Now in its 19th year, USATF’s Athlete of the Week program is designed to recognize outstanding performers at all levels of the sport. USATF names a new honoree each week and features the athlete on USATF.org. Selections are based on top performances and results from the previous week.
 
2020 Winners: January 9, Miranda Melville; January 16, Paul Perry; January 23, Natosha Rogers; January 30, Tyler Day, February 6, Devin Dixon; February 13, Elle Purrier; February 20, Tori Franklin; February 27, Sandi Morris; March 4, Abdi Abdirahman; March 12 Marielle Hall; March 19, Tim Tollefson; April 2, Louise Ritter; April 9, Francie Larrieu Smith; April 16, Erin Gilreath; April 23, Suzy Powell; April 30, Joe Dial; May 7, Dawn Ellerbe; May 14, Ramona Pagel; May 21, Brian Oldfield; May 28, Jackie Joyner-Kersee; June 4, Jesse Owens; June 11, Mary Decker Slaney; June 18, Leroy Burrell.
 
We welcome your nominations!
 
To nominate an athlete for USATF Athlete of the Week, please send a detailed email about his/her performance to communications@usatf.org.
 
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