Evans, who was at San Jose State at the
time, lost for the first to James in the
440y at the 1969 NCAA Indoor Championships
in Detroit�s Cobo Hall. �I let my guard down
because I got to know (and like) him�, said
a smiling Evans, who made a gesture that
indicated a well-placed elbow early in the
race might have changed the outcome. A rare
admisson from one of the sport�s fiercest
competitors, but also an indication of the
admiration he had for James.
Evans had taken offense when his San Jose
teammate, John Carlos, like James a veteran
of the indoor tracks in the East, told him
before the race, �You�ll never beat Larry in
a quarter�. Carlos, the last athlete to
speak, explained with feeling, �The boards
were in our blood!�.
Speaking for many of the athletes who had
flown in from all parts of the country for
the occasion, Carlos said, �There is no
distance too far, no height too high, to
keep us from being here for one of our
brothers�.
The most emotional part of
the day came when James�s son, Larry B., got
up to speak. The room fell silent as he
fought back tears, but, with his father
pumping his fist in encouragement, he
finally said, "I want everyone to know that
I love him�. Then, alluding to his father�s
health, he added, "Not while he is in a
coma or a hospital. But while he is alive
and kicking right there."
A video and slide show followed, showing
James in action at the 1968 Penn Relays and
Mexico Olympics, as well as a picture of him
in uniform during his time in the United
States Marine Corp Reserves. There were also
clips of James participating in the staged
relay races that were featured in the Bill
Cosby show.
It was finally time to hear from the man
himself. First in a video, where his
opening line was, "To paraphrase Mark Twain,
the rumors of my departure have been greatly
exaggerated." Noting what day it was, he
said, �December 1--the same day Rosa Parks
sat down so we could stand up�.
Making light of the theme of the day, �Four
Decades of Excellence�. he joked, �I can
only think of 7 days�, mentioning, among
other things, his marriage to Cynthia, his
wife of 37 years. �And today makes 8�, he
added with a smile.
To the sound of a standing ovation (one of
many during the day), the 60-year old James
then spoke �live�. Again showing his smile
and sense of humor, he said, �I got the
mike, I got the mike�, and then, �The PSAL
is in the house!�, an acknowledgement of the
many former runners who made the trip from
NY City to show their support.
The festivities then moved outdoors for a
ceremony that commemmorated Stockton�s
naming of its stadium the G. Larry James
Stadium(The �G� stands for George). The
school also placed a stone at the stadium's
entrance for Stockton athletes to touch as a
tribute to James as they enter the playing
field. James and the other 1968 relay
members--Evans, Matthews and Freeman--were
symbolically the first to touch it.
Donations were collected during the day to
help establish the G. Larry James Legacy
Fund, which will help endow scholarships at
Stockton.
"As much as I appreciate what
happened today, I'm more enamored of the
impact of the legacy fund," James said. "I'm
honored by that. That's eternity. That will
help people I don't even know about."
(Contributions are still being accepted at:https://intraweb.stockton.edu/eyos/page.cfm?siteID=145&pageID=2&action=cdmain)
In addition to the athletes mentioned above,
also in attendance were some more of his
Villanova teammates, including Marty Liquori,
Tom Donnelly, Dick Buerkle, Charlie
Messenger,
Bill Heidelberger, Al
McCafferty, Andy O'Reilly, Craig Nation,
Jack O'Leary, Des McCormack,
Bob Whitehead, Dave Fender, Bill McLaughlin,
and the other members of that Penn mile
relay--Hardge Davis, Hal Nichter, and Ken
Prince. Former Wildcats Charlie Jenkins, the
2-time Olympic gold medalist in
1956(400,4x400), current Villanova coach
Marcus O�Sullivan, John Marshall, Glen Bogue,
Ed Collymore, Martin Booker, and Larry
Livers, as well as Dave Coskey, the
school�s former Sports Information
Director, were also there to pay tribute to
one of their own.
The athlete list wasn�t confined to
ex-Villanovans, with Josh Culbreath, the
1956 Olympic silver medalist in the
400-hurdles(and a participant in those Cosby
�races�), Charlie Pratt, the former NCAA low
hurdles(180y) and U.S. decathllon champion,
Joetta Clark-Diggs, long/triple jumper Norm
Tate, and John Moon, the coach at
Seton Hall, also joining in the celebration.
It was a day that will long be remembered by
those who were lucky enough to be there.
Dave Patrick said it best--�It
was vintage Larry, giving more back than he
gets. His inspiring video and talk will be
engrained in my mind forever. I am sure the
experience in some way will make us all
better for it�.
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