MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE

2001 Regular Session

To: Rules

By: Senator(s) Michel, Harden, Frazier, Walls, Jackson, Horhn

A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION COMMENDING AND CONGRATULATING LARRY MYRICKS, ALL-AMERICAN TRACK & FIELD STAR AT MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE AND OLYMPIC MEDALIST, UPON HIS INDUCTION INTO THE MISSISSIPPI SPORTS HALL OF FAME CLASS OF 2001.

WHEREAS, the Jackson Touchdown Club and Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame unveiled the Class of 2001 of the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame, which features Larry Myricks, who hailed from Jackson and was an All-American track and field star at Mississippi College and an Olympic medalist in the long jump; and

WHEREAS, his sports career is a matter of record: one of Mississippi's greatest track and field stars who was an Olympic long jump medalist, Larry was born in Clinton, but raised in Jackson and was a star athlete at Forest Hill High School; after graduating from high school, Myricks attended nearby Mississippi College where he was coached by Joe Walker, who is now the track coach at Ole Miss; he was a four-year letterman in track for the Choctaws and was named All-Gulf Conference his entire college career; Larry led the Mississippi College track team in scoring for four years and he was named Most Valuable and permanent track and field captain; Myricks was a four-time All-American at Mississippi College; Larry won numerous track meets throughout the state, south and nation during competition in the long jump, 100 meters, 200 meters and various relay teams; he became a world class long jumper; his college days on the Choctaw track team were truly remarkable; he broke Gulf South Conference (GSC) records in the 100 meter, 200 meter and long jump events; he was a member of the 400 meter and 1600 meter relay teams that broke the GSC records; when he left Mississippi College, he held the school records for the 100 meter, 200 meter and long jump, plus he was a member of record-setting relay teams in the 400 meter, 1600 meter and spring medley; during this active athletic period, Larry maintained a 2.75 GPA; in 1975, Larry won the AAU long jump championship and became rated as the top junior in the world; he won the United States/Soviet Union junior meet in the long jump with a leap of 25'6-3/4"; one of Larry's finest years was in 1976; he once again was AAU champion in the long jump, won the United States/Soviet Union meet in Leningrad in the long jump and finished third in the NCAA indoor long jump competition; Myricks had the 6th best ever indoor jump for an American in the long jump with a leap of 26'6-3/4"; the jump was the 10th best in the world; he took the NCAA Division 2 championship with a leap of 25'10", and then captured the NCAA Division 1 title in the long jump with a leap of 26'1-1/2"; Larry finished 2nd in the U.S. Olympic trials with a jump of 27'1-1/4"; this was the first time a person had jumped over 27 feet and not won the Olympic trials; his leap placed him solidly on the U.S. team to compete in the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, but misfortune struck in the preliminaries as Larry fractured his foot during warm-ups; the bad break knocked Larry out of the 1977 track season; Larry's athletic accomplishments attracted recruiters from larger schools; despite being wooed by other schools, Larry stayed loyal to Mississippi College; John Williams, who was athletic director during Larry's Mississippi College days, summed up Myricks' commitment to his school: "He has taken personal pride in representing Mississippi College, his home state of Mississippi, and the Gulf South Conference in every meet he has ever participated in and this has been a credit to him, the school, the state and the conference; national recognition has not gone to his head as it does with many athletes who win the type of honors Myricks has accumulated; he has been very humble through it all and very thankful to the college for the opportunities it has given him to take part in national championship; he has been an active recruiter for Mississippi College and the coaching staff has leaned on him to boost the morale of other athletes when such was needed"; Myricks came back in a big way in the 1978 track season; besides the Gulf South crown, he won the Tom Black Classic and was poised to strike in the NCAA meets; he became NCAA Division 2 long jump champion for a second time by leaping 25'11"; incredibly, Larry didn't stop with the long jump title, as he won the NCAA Division 2 championship in the 200 meter race with a time of 20.44 seconds; Larry's time broke "Bullet" Bob Hayes' 14-year-old record and it was the 10th best time in the world that year; he tied for second place in the NCAA Division 1 long jump with a leap of 26'5"; when 1978 was over, Larry was 11th best in the world in the long jump and third best in legal collegiate jump with the 26'5" mark; due to Larry's superb talents as a long jumper and sprinter, Mississippi College finished 4th nationally in NCAA Division 2 and 11th in 1979; Larry's senior season at Mississippi College was a memorable one; he won the AAU indoor title with a long jump of 26'2"; Myricks then took his third NCAA Division 2 championship in the long jump with a leap of 26'9-3/4"; he also won the NCAA Division 2 crown in the 200 meters with a time of 21.05; Larry then took the NCAA Division 1 long jump championship with a leap of 26'7-1/4"; this feat marked the second time in Myricks' career that he won both the Division 1 and Division 2 crowns in the same year; Larry then won the AAU Track and Field Championship long jump with a wind-aided leap of 27'2"; he also had a new stadium record jump of 26'11-1/2" in the same competition; Myricks then returned to the scene of his Olympic disaster at Montreal for the World Cup Games; he made amends by making one of his finest jumps to win the World Cup long jump competition, the second best long jump in history at 27'11-1/2"; the winning leap prompted Sam Bell, the U.S. Coach at the World Cup, to call Myricks "the best long jumper in the world today!" Larry graduated from Mississippi College in 1979 with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration degree from the School of Business and Public Administration; off the track, Larry had distinguished himself at his alma mater; he had served as Treasurer of the Track Club, a member of the "M" Club, the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and the Baptist Student Union; he was elected by his fellow students as President of the Black Student Association at the school; Coach Joe Walker summed up Larry's Choctaw track days: "There never has been a more cooperative athlete at Mississippi College; he was never one to complain and his success on the national level did much to assist him in developing a cooperative spirit among other members of the team; at no time was discipline a problem with Myricks; he knew the real meaning of the word and this is what has helped develop him into the world class athlete that he is today"; Larry remained active as an amateur after graduation and made the 1980, 1984 and 1988 U.S. Olympic Track and Field teams that competed in the Olympics; he made the 1980 team with ease, winning the long jump in the U.S. Olympic trials, but the Moscow Olympics were boycotted due to the hostage crisis in Iran; in 1984, he competed in the Los Angeles games, but he barely missed out on a medal, finishing fourth in the long jump; his hard work and dedication paid off in 1988, as Larry won the Bronze medal in the long jump at the Seoul, Korea, Olympic games; Myricks leaped 27'-1" to snare the bronze, a highlight of Larry's track & field career; at a summer track meet in Berlin, Germany, prior to the 1988 Olympics in Korea, Larry was honored with the esteemed Jesse Owens Award for his track and field accomplishments; in 1989, Larry was inducted into the Mississippi College Athletic Hall of Fame; Larry's community and charitable contributions are lengthy and notable; he has appeared to speak at Kiwanis Clubs; the Hinds Junior College Fellowship of Christian Athletes events; high school assemblies at Utica, Chastain Junior High, Enochs Junior High plus many other schools; an Olympics Awareness Session at Mississippi College; Baptist Student Union and many other similar sporting events; he was a volunteer at the Crippled Children's Hospital and assisted with Special Olympic track and cross country meets in the Jackson area; he is faithful in attendance and participation at all of his church activities; Larry was a member and vice president of the Usher Board at Second Temple Church of Christ Holiness, a singer in the New Travelers Inspirational Choir, a member of the Gospel Truth Singers and a member of the Cynthia Church of Christ Holiness; Larry was recently selected as the 32nd Best Athlete in the 50 Greatest Sports Figures from Mississippi as listed by Sports Illustrated in the magazine's century-ending issue; he is the 37th MSHOF inductee to be honored by the magazine's elite list of top athletes from all 50 states; Myricks currently resides in Glendale, California, and is a recruiter for DeVry Institute of Technology; he is married to the former Arnita Epps of Virginia Beach, Virginia, and they have two daughters, LaKeesha and Brittany; and

WHEREAS, it is with great pride that we recognize this outstanding athlete who has brought honor to his university and to the State of Mississippi:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby commend and congratulate Larry Myricks, All-American track and field star at Mississippi College and Olympic medalist upon his induction into the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2001, and wish him and his family continued success in all their future endeavors.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be presented to Larry Myricks at induction ceremonies to be held on March 23, 2001, in Jackson, Mississippi, and be made available to the Capitol Press Corps.