Colorado State University will name its fieldhouse on South College Avenue after Olympian Glenn Morris. A ceremony and reception is planned at the facility at 11:30 a.m. Friday.
“We are proud to honor Glenn Morris, one of the greatest athletes in Olympic history and a proud graduate of our university, by attaching his name to CSU’s historic field house,” said CSU president Tony Frank said in a statement.
“He trained for his gold-medal performance in this very building, and his dedication to excellence and achievement will stand as an example for current and future Ram student athletes striving to excel at the highest levels.”
Morris won a gold medal in the decathlon at the 1936 games in Berlin. He grew up “in poverty” in Simla and graduated from the Fort Collins school in 1935, and served as student body president, according to CSU.
He was was a two-time all-conference football player, as well as starring on the basketball and track teams.
Morris won the title of “world’s greatest athlete” in the 10-event Olympic decathlon with a then-record of 7,990 points when Hitler was promoting his athletes as evidence of Germany’s “master race,” according to CSU.
Morris returned to ticker tape parades in New York City and Denver, and later that year received the Sullivan Award as America’s greatest athlete over the legendary sprint champion Jesse Owens.
He had a brief Hollywood acting career and played one year of professional football before joining the Navy and serving in World War II.
He died in 1973 and is a member of numerous halls of fame.
The Glenn Morris Field House, built in 1924, serves athletes in indoor track, swimming and adult fitness programs. The basketball teams played there until 1968, when Moby Arena opened, according to CSU.
