Hall-of-fame career included Olympic gold and a half-dozen NCAA championships
Nebraska has lost a giant in the track and field world.
Hall-of-fame sprinter Charlie Green, a six-time NCAA champion for the Huskers and a two-time Olympic medalist, died in Lincoln on Monday, one week short of his 77th birthday.
Greene won three consecutive 60-yard dash titles at the 1965, 1966 and 1967 NCAA Indoor Championships, and he was the NCAA outdoor champion in the 100-meter dash in each of those years. He was a seven-time All-American and 11-time conference champion.
A former world record holder in the 100 meters, Greene in 1968 was a member of the U.S. 4x100-meter Olympic relay team that won the gold medal in Mexico City in a world-record time of 38.19. After winning the first-ever gold by a Husker (photo at top is from the medal ceremony), Greene added a bronze in the 100-meter dash despite injuring his hamstring.
After a 24-year military career in which he rose to the rank of major, Greene worked for Special Olympics International in Washington, D.C., before returning to Lincoln, where he worked in student affairs for the university for six years. Greene, a native of Pine Bluff, Ark. who grew up in Seattle, remained a big part of the Lincoln community, as he trained high school track and field athletes and volunteered for the Husker Life Skills program.
Denny Walker, a teammate of Greene's at Nebraska and a lifelong friend, described Greene as a loving person, a family guy, and a loyal, dedicated friend.
"Charlie's very favorite place was the University of Nebraska. It meant more to him than anybody I know. You'd call his phone back in the day, and on the answering machine he would say 'No one's home, Go Big Red!' I felt honored to be on a relay team with the fastest man in the world. He helped me fulfill my dream."
Greene's Nebraska school records in the 50-yard, 60-yard and 100-meter dashes still stand. He is a member of the Nebraska Athletics Hall of Fame, the USA Track & Field Hall of Fame and the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame.
Note: This article contains information supplied by Nebraska Athletics. More insights into Greene's life and athletic career can be found in this 2015 interview.
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