Before taking over as the sprinting coach in the 2001 season, Leonard Myles-Mills earned three All-America citations while running at BYU from 1996-1999. In his junior and senior seasons, he won back-to-back national championship titles in the 100-meter dash. He also ran on BYU's All-American 400-meters relay team, which finished third at the1999 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
In the 2004 Summer Olympics, Myles-Mills qualified and competed for Ghana in the 4x100-meter relay and 100-meter dash. After posting a season-best time of 38.88, his team took sixth after competing together only a few times. In the 100-meters he advanced to the semifinals and ran a 10.22 but barely missed the finals.
"Leonard is a wonderful leader," said BYU track coach Mark Robison. "As a collegian, he accomplished everything you could accomplish, both indoors and outdoors. He brings a wealth of international experience with him as well. The kids like him and respect him, and he will be a tremendous asset to our program."
Myles-Mills, a native of Dansoman Accra, Ghana, represented his country in international competition by qualifying for the national team in 1998. He took third that year in the 100-meter dash at the African Championships in Senegal, which qualified him to compete in the World Cup in Athletics in Johannesburg, South Africa.
In 1999, he won first place at the All-African Games, also held in Johannesburg.
Myles-Mills competed in the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney. He made it to the semi-finals of the 100-meter dash, finishing in ninth place overall.
"I was fortunate to have the best coaches here at BYU," Myles-Mills said. "This is a great opportunity for me to be able to come back here, to do what I know how to do, and to share some of the things I have learned with the athletes here."
In his first year as the BYU sprint coach, Myles-Mills led the Cougar sprinters to two All-America citations.
Myles-Mills is married to the former Tiffany Clawson and the couple has two boys.
Years at BYU
2001-present
Education
- B.S. in Sociology from BYU, 1999
Prior to BYU
- Ran for Ghana’s National Team
- Competed in the 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games
Hometown
- Originally from Dansoman Accra, Ghana
- Lives in Provo, Utah
Personal/Family
- Married to Tiffany
- They have three children, two boys and one girl
2009 Hall of Fame Inductee
Four-time All-American Leonard Myles-Mills won back-to-back national championships his junior and senior year in the 100-meter dash en route to a hall of fame induction in 2009.
After older brother John, a former BYU sprinter and two-time Olympian, recommended his little brother Leonard to Cougar track coaches, the rest was history. The Ghana native's stay at BYU eventually led to three NCAA Championship titles and was the springboard to a prestigious career at the All-Africa Championships, World Championships and ultimately the Olympic Games.
Myles-Mills earned his first NCAA title and All-America citation his junior year in 1998, winning the 100-meter dash in 10.20 seconds at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. But nothing would compare to 1999 when Myles-Mills recorded one of the best seasons in the history of BYU track. Not only did Myles-Mills defend his 100-meter outdoor title, but he was also the indoor 60-meter dash NCAA champion and the anchor to the Cougar outdoor 400-meter medley relay team that finished third, making Myles-Mills a four-time All-American for his career.
In addition, Myles-Mills won the same four events in the Western Athletic Conference championship that season, including an NCAA-record time of 6.45 in the 60-meters. That time still stands as the fastest performance in NCAA history and African history and is the fifth-fastest time ever recorded.
At the All-Africa Games in 1999, the Cougar speedster won the 100-meters in Johannesburg, South Africa, and would later take the bronze medal at the Games four years later in Abuja, Nigeria.
Myles-Mills also competed in the IAAF World Championships, running the 60 meters in both 2003 and 2004, finishing seventh and third, respectively.
Myles-Mills holds numerous spots in the BYU record books, including second in the 100-meters (9.98), fourth in the 200-meters (20.54) and first in the 4x100 relay (38.88) in outdoor competition; and first in the 60-meters (6.45) and first in the 200-meters (20.61) in indoor competition.
After graduating with a degree in sociology in 1999, Myles-Mills went on to represent his native country in the 2000 Sydney and the 2004 Athens Olympics. In Sydney, he made it to the semifinals of the 100-meters, finishing ninth overall with a time of 10.25, in addition to participating in Ghana's 4x100-meter relay team. In Athens, Myles-Mills again competed in the same two events, barely missing the 100-meter finals with a time of 10.22. He also helped the national relay team to a sixth-place finish.
Leonard Myles-Mills married Tiffany Clawson in the Salt Lake Temple in December of 1998. The couple have three children, Benjamin, Alexander and Hannah. The family has found a home in Provo, as Myles-Mills has worked as BYU's sprint coach from 2001 to the present.
Career Highlights
- Qualified for Ghana’s National Team in 1998
- Placed third in the 100-meter dash at the African Championships in Senegal 1998
- Qualified to compete in the World Cup in Athletics in Johannesburg, South Africa
- Placed first in the 100-meter dash at the All-Africa Games in Johannesburg, South Africa 1999
- Holds the Ghana record for the 100-meter dash
- Set a new African indoor record in the 60 meters and is tied for fifth in the all-time male athlete record books for that time 1999
- Placed second at the All-Africa Games 2003
- Competed in the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia where he finished ninth overall in the 100-meter dash
- Qualified for the 2004 Summer Olympics and competed for Ghana in the 4x100-meter relay and 100-meter dash; he finished sixth in the 100-meter dash semi-finals,and his team won the Africa Championships
- Four-time All-American
- Won back-to-back NCAA Championship titles in the 100-meters (1998 and 1999)
- In 1999, ran for BYU’s 400-meter relay team which finished third at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships
- In 1999 won the 60-meter dash, breaking the NCAA record, won the 100-meter and 200-meter dash, and anchored the first-place 4x100-meter relay team
- Is ranked second in the All-time top performers record books for the 100-meters
- Is on the first and second place 4x100-meter relay teams in the All-time top performers record books
- Two-time Cougar Club Y Awards Competitor Award Recipient
Before BYU
- Sportsman of the Year in 1989 and Athlete of the Year in 1991 at Accra Academy
- Inter-College top athlete in 1993
After BYU
- Ran for Ghana’s National Team
- Participated in the All-Africa Games and the Africa Championships
- Became BYU’s sprinting coach in 2001
- Competed in the 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games
Post-BYU Honors and Societies
- Won a bronze medal in the Africa Championships 1998
- Won a gold medal in the All-Africa Games 1999
- Holds the Ghana record for the 100-meter dash
- Won a silver medal in the All-Africa Games 2003
- Finished ninth overall in the 100-meter dash of the 2000 Sydney Olympics
- Placed sixth in the semi-finals of the 100-meters in the 2004 Summer Olympics
- Helped his national relay team to a sixth-place finish in the 2004 Summer Olympics
- His team won the Africa Championships 2004
- Placed third at the 10th IAFF World Indoor Championships for his performance in the 60-meter dash