Bates Bobcast Episode 183: Catching up with long jump and triple jump record-holder John Douglas ’60

Along with classmate Rudy Smith, John Douglas '60 starred for the Bates men’s track and field team in the late 1950s. Bates became a regional powerhouse during his time in Lewiston, at one point defeating 31 opponents in a row over the course of 21 meets between 1957 and 1959. Douglas competed in numerous events for the Bobcats and his name is still number one in the Bates record books in both the indoor and outdoor long jump, as well as the outdoor triple jump. His indoor record long jump of 25 feet, 0.75 inches took place during his junior year in 1959 at Madison Square Garden, with Jesse Owens -- yes, that Jesse Owens -- officiating. Later that same year, representing Bates in the segregated south, he set the program outdoor long jump record of 25 feet, 1.5 inches. Both jumps also established New England records at the time. During Douglas’s years as a Bobcat, the men’s track and field team won the state championship every year except 1959, when Douglas missed the meet due to injury. After graduating in 1960 with a degree in physics, Douglas went on to have a remarkable career, working for the likes of Lockheed Research Laboratories, Bank of America and Dole Foods. Then he became a media mogul, starting his own television station and purchasing a number of radio stations as well. Douglas served as a Bates trustee from 1995 to 2000 and he still owns and operates numerous radio stations. And today, John Douglas joins the Bobcast!