Watts Among 6 Nominees for Owens Award

Quincy Watts, a double gold medalist in last summer’s Olympic Games in Barcelona, is one of six nominees for the 1992 Jesse Owens Award.

The award is presented annually to the country’s outstanding track and field athlete.

Watts was a three-time state sprint champion at Taft High and an NCAA champion for USC this year. He set two Olympic records in the 400 meters in the Games and ran the second leg on the world-record-setting 1,600 relay team.

His winning time of 43.50 seconds in the final of the 400 is the second-fastest behind Butch Reynolds (43.29) of the United States. Watts’ 43.71 clocking in his semifinal is the third fastest.

Watts’ 43.1-second split in the relay is the fastest ever and helped blow the race open for a U.S. team that timed 2 minutes 55.74 seconds.

The other nominees are Kevin Young, Carl Lewis, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Gwen Torrence and Lynn Jennings.

Young, a resident of Reseda and Watts’ roommate in Barcelona, set a world record of 46.78 in the 400 intermediate hurdles in the Games.

Lewis won his third consecutive Olympic gold medal in the long jump in Barcelona and anchored the 400 relay team to victory in a world record time of 37.40.

Joyner-Kersee of Canoga Park won her second consecutive gold medal in the heptathlon and was the bronze medalist in the long jump.

Torrence won the women’s 200 in Barcelona. She also earned gold and silver medals for running legs on the 400 and 1,600 relay teams.

Jennings was the bronze medalist in the 10,000 in the Games after winning her third consecutive title in the World cross-country championships in Boston in March.