Mal Whitfield - Wikipedia

Malvin Greston Whitfield (October 11, 1924 – November 19, 2015) was an athlete, goodwill ambassador, and airman. Nicknamed "Marvelous Mal", he was the Olympic champion in the 800 meters at the 1948 and 1952 Summer Olympics, and a member of the 1948 gold medal team in the 4 × 400 meters relay. Overall, Whitfield was a five-time Olympic medalist (three gold, one silver, one bronze). After his competitive career, he worked for forty-seven years as a coach, goodwill ambassador, and athletic mentor in Africa on behalf of the United States Information Service.[1]

Whitfield joined the United States Army Air Forces in 1943 as a member of the Tuskegee Airmen. After World War II, he remained in the military, but also enrolled at Ohio State University. In the early 1950s, he also served in the United States Air Force during the Korean War, flying 27 combat missions as a tail gunner.[2] Under the coaching of Larry Snyder, he won the NCAA title while at Ohio State in the 800 m in 1948 and 880 yd in 1949. After leaving the university, he won the AAU title from 1949 to 1951 at 800 m, in 1953 and 1954 at 880 yd and in 1952 at 400 m. He also won the 800 m at the 1951 Pan American Games in Buenos Aires, Argentina.[3]