Dennis Johnson left his island home in pursuit of two dreams: a college education and a world record. He tied the world record of 9.3 seconds and was ranked second in the world for the 100-meter dash in 1961. Three years later, he earned a bachelor’s degree in physical education from SJSU and represented Jamaica in the Olympics.

“He returned to his native Jamaica after graduating and decided his country needed a U.S.-style college athletic program. He started working out of his car as sporting director of the University of Technology in Kingston, but three decades later, he is enjoying the culmination of his lifelong pursuit,” San Jose Mercury News reporter Elliott Almond wrote in 2008. 

Johnson is now known as a godfather of Jamaican track. Due to the opportunities he and others provide young athletes, the tiny island nation has produced a steady stream of world-class sprinters, including Usain Bolt, the fastest man in the world today.