C. Harmon Brown
From WikiRun
| Harmon Brown | |
| Event | hurdles |
|---|---|
| Born | 1930 |
| Died | November 11, 2008 at San Mateo, CA |
| College | Lafayette '52 |
C. Harmon Brown (1930—2008) was an American endocrinologist who was a pioneer in the field of sports medicine. Dr. Brown's research studied the effects of rigorous exercise on women.
Brown graduated from Lafayette College in 1952, where he had been the conference champion in hurdling on three occasions and had set two college records, in the 120-yard high hurdles and 220-yard low hurdles.[1] He was awarded his medical degree in 1956 from the The George Washington University School of Medicine. He was chief of the medical service at the Veterans Administration hospital in Livermore, California and director of university health services at California State University, Hayward.[2]
When he began coaching in 1962, women were not permitted to participate in collegiate competitions. Brown became a tireless advocate on behalf of women athletes and conducted pioneering research on the effects of strenuous exercise on the female body to demonstrate women's physiologic and performance capabilities.[3] With female participation in scholastic sports increasing, Brown was quoted by Time magazine stating that many women may suffer sports injuries, but that "teachers are not equipped to show girls how to gradually improve their physical fitness and cut down on injuries".[4] His research on women participating in athletics showed that different training techniques were needed by women, who he found were more loose jointed and more susceptible to certain injuries, such as dislocated shoulders. His works on the subject include the 1986 "The Menstrual Cycle and Physical Activity" and 1988's "Sport Science Perspectives for Women".[2]
Dr. Brown researched the use of performance-enhancing drugs by athletes and served with the International Association of Athletics Federations and other organizations worldwide to develop antidoping standards. He started working with the Ladies Professional Golf Association in January 2008 on protocols for testing professional golfers for drug use.[2]
Brown served TAC/USATF as chair of the organization's Sports Science and Medical Committee for two decades, where he was instrumental in developing USATF's innovative drug testing initiatives. The past few years he served as USATF's High Performance Sports Science Chair. Brown was also one of the co-architects of USATF's High Performance Programs philosophy of track and field being an athlete-centered, coach-driven and science-based sport.[3]
Brown was a long-time college professor, spending four decades at the University of California, San Francisco. He coached athletes at all levels, including the international level, in track and field athletics events such as the discus throw, the javelin throw and the shot put. He was on the coaching staff of nine American international teams from 1967 to 1986, including United States teams at two Olympics and two Pan American Games.[2]
Brown was a well respected author. Brown was a contributing author to the USA Track & Field Coaching Manual. He also served as the editor and co-author of the IAAF Medical Manual for Athletics and Road Running Competitions: A Practical Guide, a publication which is now in its third edition.
Brown died at age 78 on November 11, 2008 of cancer. He had lived in San Mateo, California.[2]
In December 2008, USATF awarded Brown its Heliodoro and Patricia Rico Lifetime Achievement Award.[3]
References
- ↑ Staff. "Longtime USATF contributor Dr. C. Harmon Brown dies", USA Track & Field, November 13, 2008. Accessed 2008-12-07.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 "C. Harmon Brown, Pioneer Sports Doctor, Is Dead at 78"", The New York Times, November 15, 2008, p. B10. Retrieved on 2008-12-07.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Brown remembered with Rico Lifetime Achievement Award Retrieved 2008-12-07.
- ↑ Staff. 'The Weaker Sex? Hah!", Time (magazine), June 26, 1978. Accessed November 18, 2008.