Back in 2004 I decided I wanted to write a book on Rodney Milburn, the 1972 Olympic champion in the 110 meter high hurdles. Milburn passed away at the age of 47, in 1997, in a tragic accident at his workplace. When I heard news of his death, I expected (naively, perhaps) to hear an outpouring of emotions, followed by a book and a movie, but the years kept passing by and I barely heard a whisper. That’s when the thought occurred to me, why don’t I write something.
I didn’t want one of the greatest hurdlers of all time to be forgotten. So I called some people at the Interpretive Museum in Milburn’s hometown of Opelousas, LA. The museum featured an exhibit on Milburn that included some action photos, a replica of his Olympic gold medal, his USA uniform, and other memorabilia. I was told, a couple weeks after my initial inquiry, that the members of Milburn’s family would be okay with me going ahead with a biography.
So, between the fall of 2004 through most of 2006, I spent much time doing research for, and writing, a biography of the life of Rodney Milburn. I traveled to Opelousas twice, where I interviewed dozens of family members, friends, former teammates, coaches, teachers, and mentors. I also interviewed many of Milburn’s hurdling rivals, such as Renaldo Nehemiah, Charles Foster, Leon Coleman, and Larry Shipp. I also spent much time in university libraries digging for old articles and meet results. Ken Stone of www.masterstrack.com did me the favor of sending me old copies of Track & Field News that proved to be invaluable. Stone also edited early drafts of the first few chapters, which proved to be even more invaluable.
So after completing a full draft of the biography, I sent letters to dozens of literary agents, as well as to some university presses, hoping to find a publisher willing to put Milburn’s story into book form. But I could find no takers. I grew particularly discouraged by the reactions of two agents, both of whom were impressed with manuscript proposal that I sent them. While they both felt that the story was riveting, well-written, and well-researched, they decided to reject it based on the fact Milburn was simply too much of an unknown entity. The general public, both agents conveyed, does not know who Rodney Milburn is. One of the agents even suggested that I write a book on a more prominent athletic figure. But that’s not where my heart was. I had written a book on Rodney Milburn because I’d wanted to write a book on Rodney Milburn.
So I moved on with my life, focused on my teaching and coaching duties, and pretty much forgot about the book project. But it kept gnawing at me. I kept thinking to myself that I didn’t do all that researching and writing just to give up. Plus, I felt like I was letting down Rodney’s brother Jimmy, who really wanted this book to become a reality, and had bent over backwards to help me with my research. About a year ago, I decided that maybe I’d upload the book to my website, one chapter at a time. But before doing so, I felt it would be appropriate to check with the family members first. I sent a copy of the first chapter to them through email, and while most of them liked it and gave me the green light, not all of them agreed. So, out of respect for their wishes, I decided to drop the matter. I fully understood that, for them, Milburn was not just an Olympic hurdler, not just a famous athlete. To them, he was a brother. And the loss of someone so close still hurt.
So I dropped the project again. This time, I thought, for good. But about a month ago I discovered that Sue Deville – the head of the Opelousas Interpretive Museum, who had helped me so much in finding research and procuring interviews – had passed away. The news jolted something within me – a conviction that I needed to finish what I had started.
So I’ve decided that I’m going to go ahead and publish the book on this website, www.hurdlesfirst.com, one chapter at a time. However, I will exclude the first chapter out of respect for the wishes of those family members who shared Milburn’s childhood years, and who would prefer that those memories remain undisclosed to the public.
To summarize Milburn’s childhood, let me just state the facts: He was born (1940) and raised in Opelousas, a small town in Louisiana, about 50 miles west of Baton Rouge. Throughout his childhood, Opelousas was segregated, and the black people were generally poor.
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The working title for my biography on Milburn is Rodney Milburn: The Quiet Champion. That’s because everyone I interviewed emphasized his humility, his soft-spoken nature, his kindness and concern for others. This book is a tribute to a great man who lived a great life and accomplished great things despite enormous odds and the need to overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles. This book is a hurdler’s tribute to a hurdler. It is my way of saying, Thank you Rodney Milburn, for running over those hurdles with such beauty and grace, for inspiring those who inspired me, for being a quiet champion, a humble man….
© 2010 Steve McGill