Willie May
William Lee "Willie" May (born November 11, 1936 in Knoxville , Alabama , † March 28, 2012 in Rochester , Minnesota ) was an American hurdler who specialized in the 110-meter distance .
May first caught on in the athletics scene in 1955 when he won three titles with Blue Island High School at the Illinois State Championships. Between 1957 and 1959 he won ten hurdles for Indiana University . In 1960 he qualified as runner-up in the US elimination match for the Olympic Games in Rome . There the USA achieved a triple triumph: May won silver in 13.8 seconds behind Lee Calhoun at the same time and ahead of Hayes Jones (14.0 seconds). He also won silver at the 1963 Pan American Games in São Paulo. He set his personal best of 13.4 s on August 12, 1960 in Walnut .
1967 May became a physical education teacher and track and field coach at Evanston Township High School. In 2000 he retired from teaching, but remained active as a trainer until 2006 and then as a trainer assistant. May was inducted into the Indiana University Athletic Hall of Fame in 2000, the Illinois Track & Cross Country Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2007, and the Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame in 2010 . He died of amyloidosis on March 28, 2012 .
Web links
- Willie May in the database of trackfield.brinkster.net (English)
- Willie L. May, 1936-2012 , Obituary by Jonathan Bullington in the Chicago Tribune , April 4, 2012
- Willie May in the Sports-Reference database (English; archived from the original )
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | May, Willie |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | May, William Lee (real name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American hurdler |
| DATE OF BIRTH | November 11, 1936 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Knoxville , Alabama |
| DATE OF DEATH | March 28, 2012 |
| Place of death | Rochester , Minnesota |