Homegrown Olympians

STARKVILLE – As the 2024 Paris Olympic Games rapidly approach, it is important to recognize the plethora of athletes who have represented Mississippi State on the world's stage through the years and built a foundation for Mississippi athletes to build on in the future.

Of the 27 athletes in history that have represented the Maroon and White on the Olympic stage, five hailed from Mississippi. The most recent athlete representing the Magnolia State was Byhalia native Erica Bougard, who finished ninth in the heptathlon at the 2020 Tokyo Games.

Bougard's 16 All-American honors and three SEC Field Athlete of the Year awards speak for her abilities on the track. As one of the most decorated athletes to compete at Mississippi State, Bougard became the first woman in the history of the program to earn a nomination for The Bowerman, which is granted to the best collegiate track and field athlete in the country.

"With Erica Bougard being a Mississippi kid, I think it was really special that she came to Mississippi State, graduated from Mississippi State and still represents Mississippi State at a high level," current Bulldog track and field head coach Chris Woods said. "In my belief, Mississippi has some of the best talent in the country. They just don't have the same type of exposure opportunities as some other kids throughout the country. For someone like Erica to come out of this state, to stay in this state as a student-athlete in college and then leave this state and represent it at such a high level, that goes to show all of the talent that a place like Mississippi can produce."

If you are searching for another trailblazer who made a historic impact representing Mississippi, look no further than Scott Field at Davis Wade Stadium.

Don Scott was the first Olympian in the history of the university and made an immediate impact as one of the greatest track and field athletes in the state.

Scott competed in the 1920 Antwerp Games and finished fifth in the 800m. He followed that four years later by switching sports to modern pentathlon and finishing 26th in that event at the 1924 Paris Olympics. The native of Woodville was known as the South's first national champion in any track and field event.

Speaking of the 1924 Paris Olympics, MSU had four athletes representing the United States, and all four hailed from the state of Mississippi. Commodore Scott Cochran, Lee Priester, William O. Spencer and the previously mentioned Scott put the Bulldog mentality on display for the world to see.

In the men's 4x400m relay, Cochran brought home the gold and became the first MSU athlete to win an Olympic medal. A report from media trackside at the 1924 Paris Olympic Games clocked Cochran at an unofficial world record in the 400m.

Four years following, Winona native Sid Robinson began to make impacts on and off the track. Robinson made his Olympic debut in the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics as a member of Team USA in the 1500m event.

Robinson's contributions off the track were just as important as his representation of the Bulldogs and the state of Mississippi, however. He earned worldwide recognition for his contributions to the field of physiology of exercise and earned the Honor Award of the American College of Sports Medicine in 1967.

Without these talented athletes who had a long-lasting impact that is still felt to this day, there would be no foundation for current and future competitors who have dreams and aspirations of representing their Magnolia State hometowns on the grandest stage in the world.

These athletes are simultaneously Bulldogs for life and Mississippi natives who put their state on the map.

Mississippi State University Athletics

Players Mentioned

Chris Woods

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