Butch Reynolds

Butch Reynolds was a 400 metre runner who ran at the 1988 and 1996 Olympics, winning a silver medal in the 400 in 1988 and a gold medal that year in the 4x400 relay. Reynolds was a three-time gold medalist in the 4x4 at the World Championships, helping US teams win in 1987, 1993, and 1995. He also won silver medals in the 400 at the Worlds in 1993 and 1995 and a bronze in 1987, and added a gold medal in the 400 at the 1993 World Indoor Championships.

In August 1988 Reynolds ran 400 metres in 43.29 for a world record, finally bettering Lee Evans’ famed 400 world record from the 1968 Mexico City Olympics. In 1990 he was suspended for alleged drug use by the IAAF and fought that in courts for almost two years, with the battle going to the US Supreme Court, who declared him eligible to compete at the 1992 Olympic Trials. He made the relay team for the 1992 Olympics but the IAAF would not allow him to run at the Olympics. He later won a libel suit against the IAAF in US courts, but the IAAF refused to recognize that verdict and it was eventually overturned on appeal.

Reynolds attended The Ohio State University, where he was NCAA Champion in the 400 in 1987. He went into coaching, serving as the speed coach for the Buckeyes football team, and then became a sprint coach at Ohio Dominican University in Columbus. Reynolds was elected to the US Track & Field Hall of Fame in 2016.

Personal Best: 400 – 43.29 (1988).