Dillard Harrison

American track and field athlete, who is the only male in the history of the Olympic Games to win gold in both the 100 m (sprints) and the 110 m hurdles, making him the “World’s Fastest Man” in 1948 and the “World’s Fastest Hurdler” in 1952. Dillard was drafted into the Army in 1943 serving in the all-black 92nd Infantry Division known as the Buffalo Soldiers. He returned to college in 1946 and resumed athletics, to which he had been inspired by Jesse Owens, who was also from Cleveland and had attended East Technical High School as well. At the 1948 London Summer Olympics, Dillard won the final of the 100 m, proven by the photo finish. This was the first use of a photo finish at an Olympic Games. As a member of the 4 x 100 m relay team, he won another gold medal at the London Games. Four years later, still a strong hurdler, Dillard won the 110 m hurdles event in Helsinki. Another 4 x 100 m relay victory yielded Dillards fourth Olympic title. He later worked for a baseball franchise in scouting and public relations capacities, and hosted a radio talk show. Dillard died in Cleveland, Ohio on 15 November 2019 at the age of 96 from stomach cancer. Link to Wikipedia biography Read less