Hasely Crawford

Hasely Crawford took up athletics only at the age of 17 and made his international début at the 1970 Commonwealth Games, where he won bronze in the 100 metres. Only two years later, he surprisingly qualified for the 100 metre final at the Munich Olympics, but pulled his hamstring after 20 metres and failed to finish. Crawford won a silver medal in the 100 m at the 1975 Pan American Games and, as an Eastern Michigan University student, won the NCAA 100 m title that year. Crawford prepared specially for the 100 and 200 events at the 1976 Olympics with his college coach Bob Parks, whose strategy was allowing Crawford to only run in a few races during the season. This tactic paid off as, at the Olympics, Crawford narrowly won the 100 metre final in a time of 10.06, just 0.02 in front of Don Quarrie of Jamaica, winning Trinidad and Tobago's first Olympic gold medal. He had also qualified for the 200 final, but injured his groin mid-race and limped to the finish last, nearly a minute behind the rest of the competitors. After the Olympics Crawford won the 100 at the 1977 Central American and Caribbean Championships and won his final major international medal at the 1978 Commonwealth Games, where he won bronze in the 100. Crawford continued to represent Trinidad and Tobago at major international tournaments until the mid-1980s, including at the 1980 and 1984 Olympics, but never reached the final again. Domestically, Crawford won five Trinidad and Tobago 100 m titles (1972, 1975-76, 1979-80) and one 200 m title (1976). In 2000 Crawford was named the Trinidad and Tobago Athlete of the Millennium and he is a member of the Caribbean Hall of Fame, one of only three track and field athletes to be inducted, along with Ato Boldon and Arthur Wint.

Personal Bests: 100 – 10.06 (1976); 200 – 20.2 (1976).