Charles B. Hoyt

Charles B. Hoyt

Hoyt from the 1925 Michiganensian
Born c. 1896
Greenfield, Iowa
Died 1978
Citizenship United States
Years active 1913-1946
Known for Track athlete and coach

Charles B. Hoyt (c. 1896–1978) was track athlete and coach.[1]

Champion sprinter

A native of Greenfield, Iowa,[2] Hoyt won three straight 100 and 220 yard dashes in the Iowa state meet from 1911–1913 and won seven career gold medals.[3] As a high school student in 1912, Hoyt was offered a place on the U.S. Olympic team but turned down the chance.[4] He ran a nation’s best of 9.8 in 1913—the same year the Amateur Athletic Union called him "America’s best sprinter."[3] His 9.8 time was equaled by Bill Carter of Chicago in 1914 but was not bettered until 1932 when Foy Draper of California ran 9.6.[3] After graduating early from high school, Hoyt enrolled at Grinnell College where he set a world record in the 220-yard dash on a curved track at the 1916 Drake Relays.[5] He won intercollegiate championships in both the 100-yard and 220-yard runs,[6] but lost the opportunity to compete in the Olympics when the 1916 Summer Olympics was cancelled due to World War I. He graduated from Grinnell College in 1917 and served in the United States Navy during World War I.[6]

Track coach

Grinnell College and Sioux City High School

After his service in the Navy, Hoyt coached track at Grinnell College where he trained Morgan Taylor, the first Olympic champion from Iowa.[4] He next became the athletic director at Sioux City (Central) High School.[6][7]

University of Michigan

He was hired by the University of Michigan in 1923 as the assistant track coach and trainer of the football team.[6] In 1930, he became Michigan's head track coach. In his ten years as Michigan's head coach (1930–1939), Hoyt's Michigan track teams won 14 of a possible 20 Big Ten Conference indoor and outdoor titles, including six straight indoor championships from 1934-1939.[6][8] With Hoyt as head coach, Michigan was 40-6-0 in dual meets.[8] His Michigan athletes also won five individual NCAA championships and 63 individual Big Ten championships (27 indoor and 33 outdoor).[8] The athletes Hoyt coached at Michigan include:

Yale University

In 1939, he was hired by Yale University as the school's track coach and trainer of its football team.[2] He remained track coach at Yale until 1946 when he was replaced by Robert Giegengack.[14]

Later life and honors

After leaving Yale, Hoyt lived in Woolstock, Iowa where he operated large farm holdings.[5][7] In 1948, Hoyt was selected as the referee for the 48th annual Western Conference track and field meet.[7] He was inducted into the Helms Foundation Track Hall of Fame in 1949 and the Iowa Sports Hall of Fame in 1955.[5]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Charles Hoyt Named as Yale Track Coach". Mason City Globe-Gazette (AP wire service story). 1939-03-10.
  2. 1 2 3 "Track & Field Timeline & Overview" (PDF). Iowa High School Athletic Association.
  3. 1 2 "Up and Down the Main Stem". Des Moine Register. 1956-10-18.
  4. 1 2 3 "Grinnell Blanket for Hoyt". Des Moines Register. 1966-05-23.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Bruce Madej, Rob Toonkel, Mike Pearson, Greg Kinney (1997). Michigan: Champions of the West, p. 77. Sports Publishing LLC. ISBN 1-57167-115-3.
  6. 1 2 3 "Hoyt Named Referee of Big Nine Track Meet Here". Wisconsin State Journal. 1948-05-21.
  7. 1 2 3 "U of M Men's Track and Field". University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library.
  8. http://www.michtrack.org/lists/HS%20Boys%201923.pdf
  9. http://www.mgoblue.com/track-field-m/article.aspx?id=60320
  10. http://www.mgoblue.com/track-field-m/article.aspx?id=59470
  11. Patricia Zacharias and Vivian M Baulch (2002-02-02). "Michigan Athletes have made Olympic history". The Detroit News.
  12. "Breaks Helped Tolan to Enter Olympic Games: 'Fastest Human Alive' Gets Breaks at Right Time To Reach Olympics". The Charleroix Mail. 1932-08-23. ("There is no track in Detroit sufficiently good enough for sprinting and daily trips had to be made to Ann Harbor [sic]. There, too, he could work under Charles Hoyt and Steve Farrell, U. of M. coaches.")
  13. "Named Track Coach". Lima News. 1946-12-02.
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