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Charles William Paddock (August 11, 1900 – July 21, 1943) was an American athlete and two-time Olympic Games champion.
In 1920, Paddock represented his country at the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp. In Belgium, he had his greatest successes, winning the 100 m final, while placing second in the 200 m event. With the American 4 × 100 m relay team, Paddock won a third Olympic medal. Paddock became famous for his unusual finishing style, leaping towards the finish line at the end of the race.
The next year, he ran the 110 yard, which is slightly more than 100 m, in 10.2 seconds. It was not until 1956 that the world record for the 100 m became lower than Paddock's time over 110 yard. Paddock broke or equaled several other world records over Imperial distances.
At the 1924 Olympics, Paddock again qualified for both the 100 and 200 m finals, but he was less successful than four years earlier; he finished 5th in the 100 m and won another silver medal in the 200 m. Paddock was not a part of the American relay team. In Chariots of Fire, the 1981 Oscar-winning film about those races, Paddock was portrayed by Dennis Christopher. In 1928, Paddock participated in his third Olympics, but did not reach the 200 m final.
During his athletic activities, Paddock also held management positions in several newspapers; his father-in-law was newspaper publisher Charles H. Prisk. In 1926, Paddock appeared in The Campus Flirt, a black-and-white silent film (now lost) featuring another Texas native, Paramount starlet Bebe Daniels.E. R. Bills. Texas Far & Wide: The Tornado with Eyes, Gettysburg's Last Casualty, The Celestial Skipping Stone and Other Tales. Charleston, SC: The History Press, 2017. Paddock served on the personal staff of Major General William P. Upshur beginning at the end of World War I. An autobiography, titled The Fastest Human, was published in 1932.
In 1943, during World War II, Upshur and Paddock (by then a captain) died in a plane crash near Sitka, Alaska. Paddock is interred at Sitka National Cemetery in Sitka.
In 1976 he was inducted into the National Track and Field Hall of Fame.
Competition record
1920 Olympics Antwerp, Belgium 1st 100 m 10.6 1923 Universiade Paris, France 1st 100 m 10.4 1923 Universiade Paris, France 1st 200 m 21.0
External links
Categories: 1900 Births, 1943 Deaths, United States Marine Corps Personnel Of World War I, United States Marine Corps Personnel Killed In World War Ii, American Men Sprinters, Athletes At The 1920 Summer Olympics, Athletes At The 1924 Summer Olympics, Athletes At The 1928 Summer Olympics, Olympic Gold Medalists For The United States In Track And Field, People From Gainesville, Texas, Sportspeople From Cooke County, Texas, Pasadena High School Alumni, University Of Southern California Alumni, Accidental Deaths In Alaska, Track And Field Athletes From Texas, Track And Field Athletes From Pasadena, California, American Male Film Actors, Male Actors From Texas, Male Actors From Pasadena, California, 20th-century American Male Actors, Medalists At The 1924 Summer Olympics, Medalists At The 1920 Summer Olympics, Burials At Sitka National Cemetery, Universiade Medalists In Athletics, Fisu World University Games Gold Medalists For The United States, Usa Outdoor Track And Field Championships Winners, Victims Of Aviation Accidents Or Incidents In 1943, Victims Of Aviation Accidents Or Incidents In The United States, World Record Setters In The Sport Of Athletics, United States Marine Corps Officers, Military Personnel From Pasadena, California, Military Personnel From Texas, Usc Trojans Men's Track And Field Athletes, 20th-century American Sportsmen
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