13 Facts About Brooks Johnson

Brooks Johnson was born on February 28,1934 and is a former sprinter and a current American track coach.

Brooks Johnson's father shined shoes in Miami, Florida, and his mother was a housemaid.

Brooks Johnson was not a member of the USA track team for the 1964 Olympics; he was involved in an automobile accident on the way to the qualifying meet at Stanford University.

Brooks Johnson earned a JD degree from the University of Chicago Law School.

Brooks Johnson never practiced as a lawyer, instead working for the Governmental Affairs Institute in the United States Department of State in Washington DC Johnson thought of being a corporate lawyer but when told by the lawyer father of a school friend that "Regardless of what I think personally, my partners will say there is no room for blacks in corporate law", he realized that this color bar would mean that the law was not for him.

Related searches

Brooks Johnson spent 12 years at St Albans before moving on to the University of Florida as assistant track coach, then head coach at Stanford University, succeeding coach Payton Jordan, and California Polytechnic State University.

Brooks Johnson has coached Olympians since 1960, beginning with 110-meter hurdles silver medalist Willie May Since then, notable Olympians coached by Brooks Johnson include Esther Stroy, Evelyn Ashford and Chandra Cheesborough.

Brooks Johnson was part of the US Track and Field Olympic coaching staff in 1976,1984,2004, and 2008.

Brooks Johnson was elected to the USA Track Coaches Hall of Fame in 1997.

Brooks Johnson was hired by the Disney Corporation in 1996 "to jump-start a fledging sports program".

Brooks Johnson is still an active coach with a small select group of athletes that has included Justin Gatlin, Tiffany Williams and David Oliver.

In 2018, Brooks Johnson was given the USA Track and Field Legend Coach Award.

In 2010, Brooks Johnson was named Nike Coach of the Year by USA Track and Field.