2000 Hall of Fame Inductee
One of the greatest 400m hurdlers in track and field history, Frederick Morgan Taylor won three Olympic medals in the event over a span of eight years. A national champion hurdler at Sioux City High School, he became an outstanding athlete at Grinnell College in Iowa, where he played football and ran track, winning the 1925 NCAA 220-yard low hurdles. It was in 1924 that Taylor achieved his greatest fame. At the Olympic Trials that year, he set an American record, then won the gold medal at the Paris Olympics. He set a world record of 52.6 at the Olympics but the time was not accepted since he knocked down a hurdle (a rule in force at the time). Taylor also competed in the 1928 and 1932 Olympics and won bronze medals both times. At the 1932 Olympics, he was honored as the U.S. flag bearer at the Opening Ceremonies. Although his career spanned a decade, he ran the 400m hurdles only a total of 30 times, winning four national AAU championships.
World Record: 400 m hurdles - 52.00 (July 4, 1928 - )
1924 Olympics: 400 m hurdles - 52.60 (1st) 1928 Olympics: 400 m hurdles (3rd) 1932 Olympics: 400 m hurdles (3rd) 1925 NCAA: 220 yd. hurdles (1st)
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