Cliff Wiley

Wiley originally competed at the 100 and 200 m events but later moved up to compete more successfully at the 400 m. A two-time USA National Champion at 400m, in 1981 and 1982,[2] Wiley set his personal best (44.70) in the 400 metres on 21 June 1981 in Sacramento.[3] Wiley competed for his college, the University of Kansas, in the short sprints but did run 400 m relay legs, and it was his success at the latter that led his track coach, Bob Timmons, to believe this would be his best event.[4]

He was also a world record holder in the 4x100-meter relay (Bill Collins-Steve Riddick-Cliff Wiley-Steve Williams), as part of the winning USA team at the 1977 Athletics World Cup with a time of 38.03 s – an event statistician Mark Butler for the IAAF puts in his top 10 men's World Cup moments.[5][6]

In 1979 Wiley was a member of the winning 4 × 100 m United States relay team at the 1979 Pan American Games[7]

In 1983 Wiley became United States champion indoors at 440 y.[8]

Wiley never ran in the Olympics. Having qualified as second in the 200 m at the US Olympic Trials in 1980, he was denied participation at the 1980 Moscow Olympics because of the USA boycott. In 1984, a contender in the 400 m, his chances at the Olympic Trials were ruined by injury, he could only reach the quarter-final stage. He had also run in the 1976 Olympic Trials in the 100 and 200m reaching the quarter-final stage at both events.[9]

Wiley attended Douglass High School in Baltimore.

After graduation, he went to the University of Kansas, attending the law school there. A successful athlete during his time there, this success was later recognised by him being inducted into the Kansas Athletics Hall of Fame.[10] Wiley was always more than just an athlete, during his time at university, for instance, he served as leader of the Black American Law Students Association.[11]

After leaving college, Wiley settled in Kansas City, Kansas, and became a lawyer.[12]

Wiley organises an annual running event, the Cliff Wiley Track Classic, in Baltimore to give something back to his home area.[13][14]

An experienced track coach and meet organiser in his local area, in 2004 he was appointed head manager of Team USA at the IAAF World Junior Championships in Italy.[15]

Wiley is very interested in the organization of track and field and has spoken up for a clean, ethical sport. As he has stated 'When you're on drugs or counting on drugs, what kind of example are you setting?'[16] Another example is when he spoke out against the athletes who withdrew from the 1983 Pan-American Games[17] when the nature of the new drug-testing regime became clear.[18]

Wiley has spoken that as a child his dreams were to "Run in the Olympics, and be the mayor of Baltimore City."[11] He may yet achieve his second dream but the first was denied by the USA boycott in 1980 and has left a painful memory. As a member of the 1980 team he was invited to the White House to meet President Jimmy Carter. Wiley has said of meeting the President, "I respected the situation, but I guess I wanted to tell him that he was fighting with the wrong instrument. I heard all of this talk about sacrifice. I thought making a sacrifice was a voluntary thing."[11]

Wiley was ranked among the best in the US and the world in both the 200 and 400 m sprint events from 1977 to 1983, according to the votes of the experts of Track and Field News.[19][20][21][22]

Wiley was a very successful competitor at both 200 and 400 m in the USA National Track and Field Championships between 1977 and 1983.:[2]

• http://www.trackandfieldnews.com/images/stories/tfn_pdfs/Interviews/cliff%20wiley.pdf%5B%5D T&F N Interview: Cliff Wiley, Jon Henderschott, October 1981.

• http://trackfield.brinkster.net trackfield.brinkster Track and Field Statistics.