Canada's greatest track and field hero, Harry Jerome (Sep. 30, 1940 – Dec. 7, 1982) won titles and set records at the University of Oregon that went hand-in-hand with his international success.
Born in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan in 1940, Jerome played football and baseball as a youth but excelled as a sprinter and hurdler and set the Canadian record in the 220-yard dash at age 18. A year later, he equaled the world record of 10.0 seconds in the 100 meters during the Canadian Olympic Trials. He competed in the 1960 Rome Olympics prior to enrolling at the Oregon.
In Eugene, Jerome was an instant contributor, finishing second in the 100 at the NCAA championships in 1961. The next year he won the 220 title as the Ducks took the team trophy. Jerome set the world record in both the 100 yards and 100 meters during his career and ran the anchor leg on the 440-yard relay team comprised of University of Oregon sprinters that set the world record in 1962. Jerome missed the entire 1963 season because of leg surgery that could have ended his career, then returned to win another NCAA 100 title and shared in another team national championship.
Post-graduation, Harry became a teacher in the Vancouver, BC area and continued to set records and represent Canada. He made two more Olympic appearances, winning a bronze medal in Tokyo and qualifying for the 1968 Mexico City games. He was the only man to have held the 100 yard world record three different times and, at one point, held the 100 meter and 100 yard records simultaneously. In all, Jerome set a total of seven world records.
Following his career, Jerome helped create the Ministry of Sport in Canada. Burnaby, B.C., is home to the Harry Jerome Invitational Track Classic each summer.
Jerome was inducted to the University of Oregon Sports Hall of Fame as well as the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame.