Robert Lee ("Bullet Bob") Hayes (December 20, 1942 - September 18, 2002) was an Olympic gold-medal sprinter turned NFL Hall of Fame wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys. An American track and field athlete, he was a two-sport stand-out in college in both track and football at Florida A&M University. Hayes was enshrined in the Dallas Cowboys Ring of Honor in 2001 and was selected for induction in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in January 2009.
Once considered the world's fastest man by virtue of his multiple world records in the 60-yard, 100-yard, 220-yard, and Olympic 100-meter dashes, Hayes is the only man to win both an Olympic gold and a Super Bowl ring.
Hayes was also the first person to break six seconds in the 60 yard dash with his indoor world record of 5.9 seconds. While a student at Florida A&M in 1962, Hayes ran a new world record for the 100 yard dash with a time of 9.2 seconds. The next year he broke his own record with a time of 9.1, a record that would not be broken for eleven years (until Ivory Crockett ran a 9.0 in 1974). That same year, Hayes set the world best for 200 meters (20.5 seconds, although the time was never ratified) and tied the world record for the 220 yard dash with a time of 20.6 seconds (while running into an eight mph wind).
He was the AAU 100 yard dash champion three years running, from 1962-1964, and in 1964 was the NCAA champion in the 200 meter dash. He would miss part of his senior year in college because of his 1964 Olympic bid for U.S. Gold.
Posted By: Reginald Culpepper
Friday, September 30th 2005 at 11:45PM
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