In the track community, few names command the same respect as Brooks Johnson. The veteran Olympian-turned-coach has been one of the key factors behind the USA’s success on international stages passed away earlier today, and fans are in mourning. Johnson has coached at least one athlete in every Summer Olympics since 1968, as well as being the main motivator to four US Olympic teams.

Having trained the likes of Olympic icons such as Justin Gatlin and American hurdles specialist David Oliver, Johnson firmly sealed his legacy within the community. Naturally, news of his death has hit the track world hard.

Brooks Johnson leaves the mortal world

Ato Boldon, a former athlete and Olympic medalist from Trinidad and Tobago, took to X to express his grief upon learning of Brooks’ passing. “RIP to one of our sport’s legendary coaches/figures, Brooks Johnson,” reads the caption of his post from earlier today. Soon, other community members followed, and a whirlpool of emotions was unleashed.

The Hall of Famer coach has a list of accolades under his belt that would evoke a sense of jealousy among his peers like no other. However, his career didn’t reach the same heights that his students have attained over the years. Despite winning gold 1963 Sao Paolo Pan American Games, Johnson described athletics careers as more “lowlights than highlights“.

And yet, his coaching acumen was so venerated by his colleagues that in an interview from 2021 dubbed Brooks as “The Man”. Understandably, Boldon’s sentiments were echoed by the global track family.

The track and field community comes together in mourning

Kibwe Johnson, a retired hammer throw Olympian, also wrote “RIP Brooks Johnson. An absolute legend,” in his own post. Considering Kibwe is a member of the USATF Board of Directors, it’s only natural that he understands how Johnson’s death will create a void on multiple levels.

Pole Vault Power, a fan-run page on X, noted that Johnson had been a staunch supporter of his students who had been doing Zoom calls with his pupils even during the final days of his life. If that isn’t a true legend-like mentality we don’t know what is.”A moment of silence today for legendary coach Brooks Johnson who recently passed away,” reads the page’s post on Brooks, and we can almost feel their anguish.

The founder of Citius Mag Chris Chavez is also understandably finding it difficult to cope with the news of an icon leaving the track community for the adventure into the great unknown. Sharing an image from Hayward Field, Chavez posted, “A moment of silence for legendary track coach Brooks Johnson at Hayward Field before the start of today’s session of the U.S. Olympic Trials.”

Rod Gilmore, a Stanford graduate, where Johnson had coached for a long period of his life, is another fan who mourns the loss of a dearly beloved figure in his life. Sharing Boldon’s original post, Rod wrote “Legendary and a good man. He had some great years at Stanford. RIP Coach Brooks Johnson” via his X account.

“RIP you elevated our sport and brought dignity to our pursuit of excellence- both academic and on the field – and in life!” read a comment by Richard in Ato’s post’s comment section as the fan summarizes all the things that made Johnson a true icon.

Do you have any memory of the late track coach? Tell us your favorite thing about his tactics in the comments below.