Bobby Morrow†
Inducted 1988
Hometown: San Benito
High School: San Benito High School
College: Abilene Christian College
Best Known for: Athlete-Track
Oct. 15, 1935-May 30, 2020
In the pantheon of Valley greats, Morrow stands alone as its only Olympic champion.
Morrow was born in Harlingen and raised on a farm in San Benito. Before becoming a sprinter, Morrow played football for San Benito High School. Morrow also was a sprinter at Abilene Christian University, where he captured 80 of 88 individual races and won 14 championships.
Morrow won the 1955 AAU 100-yard title. His most successful season was in 1956, when he was chosen by Sports Illustrated as "Sportsman of the Year." Morrow won the sprint double in the national college championships and defended his AAU title. Morrow then went to the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, where he won three gold medals and was the leader of the American sprint team. First, he was victorious in the 100-meter dash. He then led an American sweep of the medals in the 200-meter dash, while equaling the world record at that distance with a time of 20.6 seconds (unofficially auto-timed at 20.75). He won his third gold by anchoring the 4x100-meter relay team to a world record time.
Morrow achieved great fame after winning his three gold medals, and was featured on the covers of Life magazine and SPORT magazine, as well as Sports Illustrated. He appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show and Arthur Godfrey and His Friends, and addressed a joint session of the Texas legislature.
Morrow was a superstar at San Benito High School, winning three state titles, and advanced to Abilene Christian College, where he captured 80 of 88 individual races and won 14 championships.
At the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia, Morrow cemented his place in legend, becoming the first man since Jesse Owens in 1936 to earn three gold medals. He paced the field in the 100 and then overcame a groin strain to set a world record in the 200, capping the incredible showing by helping the sprint relay team to a world mark.
In 2006, San Benito CISD named its new athletic facility “Bobby Morrow Stadium.”
He was inducted in the National Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1989 and the Texas Track Coaches Hall of Fame in 2016.