Derrick R. Adkins is a former American athlete, winner of 400 m hurdles at the 1996 Summer Olympics. Born in Brooklyn, New York,Adkins was raised in the Lakeview section of Long Island where he attended Malverne High School, graduating in 1988. That year he was ranked as the number one high school 400 meter hurdler in the nation, having run the race in 50.71 seconds, while at the age of 17. An honor student in high school, Adkins attended Georgia Tech where he received a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering in June 1993. Coached by Buddy Fowlkes and Grover Hinsdale at Georgia Tech, Derrick Adkins rose into the international athletics scene in 1991, when he finished third at the US National Championships and qualified to the 1991 World Championships, where he finished in the sixth place. Adkins won the World Student Games in 1991 and 1993 and finished seventh at the 1993 World Championships. Adkins made a rapid improvement in 1994, when he won his first US National Championships. He repeated this win in the next year and at the 1995 World Championships he was already a main favourite to the gold medal. 

July 2nd, 1970 in Brooklyn (Age 53)