Interim Provost Thomas Tunks speaks at an afternoon ceremony Wednesday honoring John Woodruff. He was the first black runner to win a gold medal at the 1936 Olympics. In 1937, he went on to break the world record in the 800 at a race in Dallas, only to have the Amateur Athletic Union rule the track was six feet short of regulation.
SMU announced a scholarship named for Woodruff to be granted each year to a student from the Dallas area who has demonstrated outstanding academic, athletic and leadership achievement. A Texas Senate Resolution in his honor was also presented.
Recently, students at Ronald Reagan Middle School in Grand Prairie set up a mathematical equation showing that Mr. Woodruff would have broken the record even if the track had been extended to regulation length.
