John Nathaniel CARTMELL

Although Penn State's first Olympic champion, Nate Cartmell never won an AAU title. He did take the British AAA 220 y crown in 1909 and was runner-up in the 100 y to Reggie Walker, the reigning Olympic champion. After finishing a close second to Archie Hahn in both sprints at the 1904 Olympics, he took the sprint double at the IC4A for three successive years (1906-08). At the 1908 Games, Cartmell finished fourth in the 100 m, third in the 200 m, and his 200 m leg for the winning medley relay team earned him an Olympic gold medal. At the end of the 1909 season, he joined the professional ranks and in his first race at Stoke-in-Trent, England, he set a new world professional record for 220 y around a turn with 21.5, although the track was covered with snow. Cartmell retired from competition in 1912 and devoted himself to coaching. He actually began coaching in 1910 at the University of North Carolina, and then coached winning teams at West Virginia and Lafayette before returning to Penn State. He had several run-ins with the football coach and athletic director, Hugo Bezdek, and was dismissed in 1933. He later coached at Princeton, Fordham, and West Point before retiring.

Personal Bests: 100 – 11.0 (1908); 200 – 21.5 (1907).