James Sanford (born December 27, 1957) is a retired track and field sprinter from the United States.
[3][4] The win in the national championships qualified Sanford for the USA team at the 1979 IAAF World Cup where he became champion at 100 metres.
[5] Sanford picked up a muscle injury in a race in Berlin seven days earlier and was a doubt to run (Harvey Glance was to be his substitute).
[7] (He also did not qualify for the 1984 Olympics, only finishing 5th in his semi-final of the 100 m.) On May 11, 1980 at a meet in Westwood, Los Angeles, California, Sanford set the unofficial low altitude world record in the 100 metres at 10.02 s,[8][9] a mark which stood for just over a year, when it was improved by Carl Lewis to 10.00 s.[10][11] In 1981 he set the world's best year performance in the men's 200 metres clocking 20.20 s on 10 May at a meet in Westwood, Los Angeles.
[11][12] Sanford was ranked among the best in the US and the world in both the 100 and 200 m sprint events from 1978 to 1981, according to the votes of the experts of Track and Field News.