Bob Hayes Annual Invitational Track Meet

Annual Bob Hayes Invitational Track and Field Meet sponsored by Office of Economic Development of The City of Jacksonville will no longer be held at William M. Raines High School, but rather the University of North Florida.

The Bob Hayes Invitational Track and Field Meet was organized in the spring of 1964 with Douglas Anderson High School in the Southside serving as the host and Northwestern High School in the Northside area serving as the running site. At that time, originator Nathaniel S. Washington, Sr. was Athletic Director, Head Coach and Track Coordinator for the five black high schools in the county, namely: New Stanton,Matthew W. Gilbert, Douglas Anderson, Northwestern, and Stanton Vocational High School.

Nat Washington was a close friend of Bob Hayes father and knew Bob as a student at Matthew W. Gilbert School where Washington was coaching before transferring to Douglas Anderson High School. In the 1964 Olympics, Bob ran in the slowest lane, tied the world record of 10.0 in the 100 meter race, and won two gold medals.

Bob Hayes was once regarded as the “World’s Fastest Human” and in the 1963 AAU meet in St. Louis, set a world record of 9.1 seconds in the 100 yard dash. He won the 100 meter dash in Tokyo, Japan with a time of 10 seconds flat, trying the world and Olympic records. In addition to the 100 yard dash record, Hayes held world marks in the 60 and 70 yard dashes.

For the past four decades the Bob Hayes Invitational Track meet has been a focal point for young track and field participants from the southeastern United States.