In an effort to celebrate Black History Month, the Gulf South Conference will share the stories and accomplishments of past student-athletes from member institutions.
National Champion.
Olympian.
Hall of Famer.
From the mid-1970s to the early-1990s, Larry Myricks was one of the top track & field athletes in the United States, and is still considered greatest long jumpers ever.
A standout performer for the Mississippi College, Myricks captured five NCAA individual titles, two winning the 200-meter race while winning the long jump three times. In 1979, he was awarded GSC Commissioner’s Trophy, which is the highest honor presented to achieve Gulf South Conference student-athletes.
Professionally, Myricks assembled a reverred career competing on the world stage and winning nine international medals, including Olympic bronze from Seoul in 1988 and silver in the 1986 Goodwill Games. He was also a three-time U.S. National Champion and two-time World Cup Champion. As a long jumper listed among the world rankings 14 times.
A native of Clinton, Miss., Myricks was a member of four United States Olympic rosters—1976, 1980, 1984, 1988—however only officially competed in two, as he suffered a foot injury during warm-ups in 1976 and missed 1980 due to the U.S. boycott of Soviet Union. During the 1988 U.S. Olympic Trails, Myrick recorded a personal-best of 8.74m (28’ 8 1/4”) in the long jump, a mark that is fifth-best ever in the world. He finished fourth in the long jump in 1984.
As a result of his fantastic career, Myricks received several accolades including being twice named Mississippi Sportsman of the Year. He is also enshrined in the Mississippi College M’Club Sports Hall of Fame (1989) and GSC Hall of Fame (2020), while being a 2001 inductee into U.S. Track and Field Hall of Fame.
Myricks still holds the conference record for the 200m (20.84) and long jump (7.98m), set during the 1979 GSC Championships.