The men's 1960 United States Olympic trials for track and field for men were held at the Stanford Stadium at Stanford University in California, between July 1 and 2. The 20 kilometer walk trials were held in Baltimore, Maryland, on July 17, and the 50 kilometer walk trials were held on July 3 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Two marathon trials were held between two races, the AAU National Championships in Yonkers, New York, on May 22 and the Boston Marathon in Boston, Massachusetts, on April 19. As it turned out, the three selectees were the top 3 at Yonkers, but that is because Gordon McKenzie was also the first American finisher at Boston.
The 10,000 meters was held during a heat wave in Bakersfield, California on July 24-25. Because of the temperatures, still at midnight, the race began at 11:58 p.m. on the 24th so the bulk of the race took place technically on the 25th. Several international athletes were allowed to participate in hopes of drawing the Americans to fast times, but the heat dashed those plans.
The decathlon was held a week after the trials, allowing athletes to make attempts at individual events. Rafer Johnson threw the javelin, Bob Gutowski tried to qualify in the pole vault, and Mike Herman attempted the long jump. While Herman failed to get a legal attempt in the long jump, a week later his World Decathlon Best 26'3" would have chased Ralph Boston and certainly would have been good enough to qualify. American resident, but Taiwanese citizen C. K. Yang was allowed to participate in the decathlon, where he pushed his college teammate Rafer Johnson to the world record, but his performance did not displace the American athletes in the trials. The process was organized by the AAU.
The women's Olympic trials were held separately in Abilene, Texas between July 15 and 16.
Men's results Key: .
Men track events 100 meters Ray Norton 10.4Frank Budd 10.4Dave Sime 10.4 200 meters Ray Norton 20.5 =Stone Johnson 20.8Les Carney 20.9 400 metersJack Yerman 46.3 Earl Young 46.5Otis Davis 46.7 800 metersTom Murphy 1:46.7Jerry Siebert 1:46.8Ernie Cunliffe 1:47.5 1500 metersDyrol Burleson 3:46.9Jim Grelle 3:47.4Pete Close 3:49.0 5000 metersJim Beatty 14:13.6Bill Dellinger 14:13.8Bob Soth 14:18.6 10,000 metersAl Lawrence Max Truex 30:11.430:16.3Doug Kyle Pete McArdle 30:12.630:22.0Bob Soth 30:26.5 110 m hurdles Lee Calhoun 13.4 =Willie May 13.5Hayes Jones 13.5 400 m hurdlesGlenn Davis 49.5 Dick Howard 49.8Cliff Cushman 49.9 3000 m s'chaseGeorge Young 8:50.6Phil Coleman 8:51.0Deacon Jones 8:52.5 20K racewalkRudy Haluza 1:34:12 Alex Oakley Ron Zinn 1:34:551:35:58Bob Mimm 1:36:07 50K racewalkRon Laird 4:40:09John Allen 4:41:36Bruce MacDonald 4:45:42 Boston Marathon Paavo Kotila Gordon McKenzie 2:20:542:22:18Jim Green 2:23:37Al Confalone 2:26:30 Yonkers Marathon John J. Kelley 2:20:13.6 Gordon McKenzie2:23:46 Alex Breckenridge 2:32:41
Men field events High jumpJohn Thomas Joe Faust =Charles Dumas Pole vaultDon Bragg Ron Morris Dave Clark Long jumpRalph Boston wAnthony Watson Irv Roberson Triple jumpIra Davis Herm Stokes wBill Sharpe w Shot putDallas Long Parry O'Brien Dave Davis Discus throwRink Babka Al Oerter Dick Cochran Hammer throwAl Hall Hal Connolly Ed Bagdonas Javelin throwAl Cantello Bill Alley Terry Beucher DecathlonRafer Johnson 8683 C. K. Yang Phil Mulkey 8426 =7652Dave Edstrom 7530
Women's results
Women track events 100 meters Wilma Rudolph 11.5 =Barbara Jones 11.6Martha Hudson 11.7 200 meters Wilma Rudolph 23.9Lucinda Williams 24.3 Ernestine Pollards 24.5 800 metersPat Daniels 2:15.6 Rosie Lovelace 2:15.7 Doris Severtsen 2:17.6 80 m hurdles Wind aidedShirley Crowder 11.4w Jo Ann Terry 11.4w Irene Robertson 11.4w
Women field events High jumpNaomi Rogers Barbara Brown Jean Gaertner Long jumpWillye White Sandra Smith Anna Smith Shot putEarlene Brown Sharon Shepherd Cecilia Rutledge Discus throwEarlene Brown Olga Connolly Pamela Kurrell Javelin throwKaren Anderson Oldham Peggy Scholler Karen Mendyka
References