Leighton Dye Explained

Leighton Dye
Sport:Athletics
Event:110 metres hurdles
Club:Los Angeles Athletics Team
Birth Date:30 October 1901
Birth Place:St. Louis, US
Death Place:Naples, US
Weight:82kg (181lb)
Pb:110 m hurdles: 14.6 (1928)

Leighton William Charles Dye (October 30, 1901 – October 25, 1977)[1] was an American hurdler. He placed fourth in the 110 m hurdles at the 1928 Summer Olympics and was United States champion in 1926.

Biography

Dye was born in St. Louis, Missouri on October 30, 1901.[1] Representing coach Dean Cromwell's USC Trojans, Dye won the IC4A 120 yd (109.7 m) hurdles title as a junior in 1925, running 14.8;[2] [3] USC won that year's IC4A team title.[4] Later that year he placed third at the national championships, behind Olympic finalist George Guthrie and NCAA champion Hugo Leistner.[5] In 1926 Dye repeated as IC4A champion, this time in 14.7,[2] [6] and placed second to Guthrie at the NCAA championships;[7] the Trojans again won the IC4A team title, and would have also won the NCAA title if one had been awarded that year.[6] [8] Dye then won at the national championships in 14.6, equalling both his personal best and Guthrie's meeting record from the previous year.[5] [9] [10]

Dye again ran 14.6, this time for the metric 110 m hurdles, at the 1928 Southwestern Olympic Tryouts, qualifying for the final Olympic Trials;[11] the time broke Earl Thomson's world record for the metric distance of 14.8,[11] although it was still inferior to Thomson's 14.4 for the imperial hurdles and was never ratified as a world record.[1] [12] At the final Trials in Cambridge Dye placed third behind Steve Anderson and John Collier, qualifying for the Olympics.[12]

At the Olympics in Amsterdam Dye won his heat in 15.0 and then his semi-final in 14.8, a time that equalled both the Olympic record and Thomson's still-official metric world record; however, South Africa's George Weightman-Smith ran 14.6 in a subsequent semi-final.[1] In the final Dye placed fourth behind Sid Atkinson, Anderson and Collier, but defeated Weightman-Smith.[1]

Dye later became a sales executive for the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company.[13] He died in Naples, Florida on October 25, 1977.[1]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Leighton Dye Bio, Stats and Results . https://web.archive.org/web/20200418122621/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/dy/leighton-dye-1.html . dead . April 18, 2020 . Sports Reference LLC . November 2, 2014.
  2. IC4A Championships (1876-1942) . . November 2, 2014.
  3. News: Galaxy of Stars in A. A. U. Meet at S. F. . . June 25, 1925 . 9 . November 2, 2014.
  4. News: Trojans Capture Athletic Events At Franklin Oval. Bakersfield Morning Echo . May 31, 1925 . November 2, 2014 . 2 .
  5. A History Of The Results Of The National Track & Field Championships Of The USA From 1876 Through 2011 . Mallon, Bill . Buchanan, Ian . Track & Field News . Track & Field News . Track & Field News . November 2, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141103003252/http://www.trackandfieldnews.com/index.php/tafn-presults?list_id=36&sex_id=M&event_id=13 . November 3, 2014 . dead .
  6. News: Barber Fails to Qualify at I.C.4-A. . . May 29, 1926 . November 2, 2014.
  7. A History of the NCAA Championships . Hill, E. Garry . . November 2, 2014.
  8. News: Eight Records Broken in College Track Meet . . June 13, 1926 . November 2, 2014.
  9. News: Westerners In The Lead . July 6, 1926 . November 2, 2014 . Beatrice Daily Sun.
  10. Web site: Leighton Dye . trackfield.brinkster.net . November 2, 2014.
  11. News: School Youth Beats Paddock, Hurdle Mark Is Broken. . June 17, 1928 . November 2, 2014 .
  12. Web site: The History of the United States Olympic Trials - Track & Field . PDF . Hymans, Richard . USA Track & Field
    Track & Field News
    . November 2, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130524031759/http://www.trackandfieldnews.com/index.php/special-articles/1151 . May 24, 2013 . dead .
  13. News: Death Notices . October 26, 1977 . November 2, 2014 . Naples Daily News.