MICHAEL DUANE JOHNSON (b. Sept. 13, 1967, Dallas, Texas, U.S.), African-American sprinter, perhaps the most eminent figure in athletics (track and field) in the 1990s. For much of the decade he was virtually unbeaten in the long sprints--the 200-metre and 400-metre races--and he held world records in the indoor 400 meters and the outdoor 200 meters. At the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, Ga., he became the first man to win gold medals at both distances; he also set Olympic marks in both events...>>> Book Michael Johnson for Your Event

In high school Johnson was one of the top 200-metre runners in Texas. After entering Baylor University, Waco, Texas, in 1986, he first began competing at 400 meters. In 1989, during his junior year, he set the indoor 200-metre U.S. record to win the national collegiate title--a title that he defended his senior year, both indoors and outdoors.

Johnson's statuesque running style--upright back, low knee-lift, and composed face--was very unlike other trackmen. In 1991 he lowered the world indoor mark at 200 meters, winning that event outdoors at the world championships. He won his first Olympic medal at the 1992 Games in Barcelona, Spain, as a member of the 4 X 400-metre relay team that set the world record, which he helped to lower again the following year. In 1995 he twice broke the world mark in the indoor 400 meters and won both long sprints at the world championships. For his double victory at the 1996 Olympic Games, at which he set a 200-metre world record of 19.32 seconds, he was named Athlete of the Year by Track & Field News, which had awarded him American Athlete of the Year five times (1990, 1993-96).

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