Darvis Patton

Darvis "Doc" Darell Patton (born December 4, 1977) is a retired American track and field athlete who competed in sprinting events.

He won the 100 m silver medal at the 2007 Pan American Games and reached the finals of the event at the 2008 Summer Olympics and the 2009 World Championships.

[7] The 2001 NCAA Outdoor Championships saw him earn four All-American honours in one meet: he was sixth in the 100 m, fourth in the long jump, third in the 200 m and won the 4×100-meter relay with the TCU Horned Frogs.

[8] He began to establish himself nationally at that year's USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, where he came fourth in the 200 m as well as seventh in the long jump.

[7] The following season saw him reach the global podium for the first time: he became the national champion in the 200 m and went on to win the silver medal in that event at the 2003 World Championships in Athletics behind teammate John Capel.

He also won a gold medal as part of the American men's 4×100 m relay team including Capel, Bernard Williams and J. J. Johnson.

[7] On the circuit he was runner-up at the Athletissima and Meeting Gaz de France 200 m races and placed fourth at the 2003 IAAF World Athletics Final.

He was substituted for the newly crowned 100 m Olympic champion Justin Gatlin for the final race, but the move backfired for the team as they finished a little slower (38.08) and had to settle for the silver medal behind Great Britain – who they had easily beaten in the heats.

The American team (with Wallace Spearmon, Tyson Gay, and Leroy Dixon) became the world champions in a world-leading time of 37.78 seconds, fending off the Jamaican challengers who set a national record.

[18] The hopes of the American men's relay team were again dashed by an illegal baton exchange, this time between Patton and Shawn Crawford.

At the 2012 London Olympics he ran as a substitute runner in the qualifiers but even the weaker American team of Jeff Demps, Patton, Trell Kimmons, and Justin Gatlin broke the national record of 37.38 seconds.

Before hanging up his spikes, Patton served as the Men's Sprints Event Leader on the USATF Athlete's Advisory Committee.

Thereafter, the veteran sprinter's peers elected him to a four-year term as a member of the USATF Board of Directors, again representing the Athlete's Advisory Committee.

He also helped ensure athletes in all track and field disciplines had access to unified representation in various aspects of USATF, including staff selections, drug testing and competition rules.

Patton joined the Texas Wesleyan University staff in March 2022 as the assistant track and field coach where he specializes in short sprints and jumps.

Patton winning at the 2008 Penn Relays
Patton (far right) grimacing in injury at the 2009 World Championships 100 m final.