Lee Evans, record-setting sprinter who protested at 1968 Olympics, dies at 74

Evans won five 400-meter titles for the United States and is a member of the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame

Lee Evans, a blazing sprinter who set records at the Olympics and wore a black beret as a sign of protest at the 1968 Games, died on Wednesday. He was 74. According to the San Jose Mercury News, Evans' family had started a fundraiser to bring the former Olympian back to the United States from Nigeria after he suffered a stroke earlier in May.

At the time of the stroke, Evans was coaching track at a high school in Nigeria.

Evans won a gold medal at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City when he became the first sprinter to run the 400-meter in less than 44 seconds. Before Evans won at those Games, his teammates John Carlos and Tommie Smith were sent home from the Games for raising their fists on the podium.

When it was Evans' turn to accept the gold medal for the 400-meter, he wore a black beret to show his support for civil rights organizations in America, including the Black Panther Party. The Olympic sprinter later revealed that he chose to wear the beret because Olympic officials told him specifically not to raise his fists in protest.

At the same Olympics, Evans also anchored the United States 4x400 relay team, which set a world record of 2 minutes and 56.16 seconds. That time stood as the record for 24 years.

Evans ended up winning five 400-meter titles for the United States and is a member of the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame. After his racing days were over, Evans worked for the United Nations in Africa and also coached national teams in Nigeria and Saudi Arabia.