Scholz, Jackson V.
Track and Field
b. March 15, 1897, Buchanan, MI
d. Oct. 26, 1986
A member of three U. S. Olympic teams, in 1920, 1924, and 1928, Scholz won a gold medal in the 200-meter dash in 1924, tying the Olympic record of 21.6 seconds. He also won a gold in 1920 as a member of the world record-setting 4 by 100-meter relay team and he won a silver in the 100-meter dash in 1924.
While a student at the University of Missouri, Scholz set world indoor records for the 70-yard dash, at 7.2 seconds, and the 75 yard dash, at 7.6 seconds) in 1920.
Scholz tied the world record of 10.5 seconds for the 100-meter and set a new world record of 20.9 seconds for the 200-meter dash in 1920. He tied his own 200-meter record nine years later, in his last season of competition.
A journalism major in college, Scholz wrote many juvenile stories and novels about sports. He appeared as a character in the 1981 movie, "Chariots of Fire," which was loosely based on events surrounding the 1924 Olympics.