1956 NCAA Track and Field Championships | |
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Dates | June 1956 |
Host city | Berkeley, California |
Venue | Edwards Stadium |
← 1955 1957 → |
The 1956 NCAA Track and Field Championships were held in Berkeley, California in June 1956. UCLA won the team title, ending a seven-year streak by the University of Southern California. Nine NCAA meet records and one American record were broken at the event.[1]
Bobby Morrow of Abilene Christian led all athletes with 20 points in the meet. Morrow won both the 100-meter and 200-meter dashes.[1] Morrow went on to win three gold medals in the 1956 Summer Olympics.
Rafer Johnson led the scoring for team champion UCLA. Johnson scored 16 of UCLA's 55-7/10 points with second-place finishes in the broad jump and high hurdles.[1] Johnson went on to win the gold medal in the decathlon at the 1960 Summer Olympics.
The one American record that was broken at the meet was in the 800-meter run. Arnie Sowell of the University of Pittsburgh set the new American mark with a time of 1:46.7.[1]