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 The
girl's team championship trophy is awarded in honor of the memory of
Dan DeHart.
Mention
the name Dan DeHart to track and field coaches and they will likely
respond with superlatives like "perfect role model" and "most
respected official". DeHart volunteered as a track official for
nearly forty years because he loved the sport and working with young
people.
De Hart was born in the tiny town of Keosauqua, Iowa in 1925. He first
made his name known to New Mexico sports fans in 1944. He played for
the University of New Mexico Lobos' baseball and basketball teams in
the 1944-1946 seasons. He was named to the all-conference basketball
team in 1946. After his two years at UNM, Dan returned to Iowa where
he graduated from the State University of Iowa in 1948 with a Master
of Arts in Business Administration. He returned to Albuquerque with
his family in 1952.
Mr. DeHart became involved in track and field in the early nineteen
sixties when his daughter competed on a youth track and field team because
no public school girls' sports were available. He worked in all phases
of youth track and was president of the New Mexico Amateur Athletic
Union and a member of the U.S. Olympic Committee for two Olympiads (1973-1978).
For nearly forty years, Dan was a positive influence on the youth of
the state of New Mexico. He was known for his integrity and his rare
ability to pick all the places in a race. He knew all the rules and
most of the kids and their times and distances. He worked primarily
as a meet director and track officials and with the Junior Olympic Program,
serving two years as the meet director of the Southwest Regional Championships.
For three decades he spent his spring weekends on the track as an official
for Albuquerque public schools track and field meets and was a regular
official at the New Mexico State Track and Field Championships.
Besides officiating for high school athletics, Dan worked with college
in international competitors. He served at the Western Athletic Conference
Indoor and Outdoor Championships and the JC Invitational Indoor Meets.
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