A native of Erick, Oklahoma, Martin was a track star at the University of Oklahoma, where he won the NCAA pole vault title in 1960. He once owned the world record in pole vault and won a gold medal in the decathlon at the 1963 Pan American Games.
He returned to OU to coach track and cross country in 1964 and served in that capacity until 1997 with remarkable success. During his tenure at OU, he coached 22 individual national champions and numerous conference champions. He also led the Sooners to six top-five NCAA finishes and two of his runners earned Olympic gold medals.
He recently came out of retirement to become the women's cross country coach at the University of Central Oklahoma in Edmond.
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