Jim became the New England AAU Open 60-yard
dash champion running a quick 6.6 seconds at the Fargo Building in Boston. For placing 1st at that meet, he
was awarded the Ed Sanders Memorial Trophy. At the
State Meet Jim’s senior year he won and tied the state
record in the 300-yard run with a time of 33.0 seconds.
In March of his senior year he led his Somerville High
track squad to a team championship at the Bowdoin
Interscholastic Track Meet. Jim won three events, in
the 50-yard dash, the 300-yard dash and the broad
jump. At the National Track and Field Championships
held in Madison Square Garden, he would finish 5th in
the nation. By the time Jim graduated, he had become
one of Somerville’s most decorated athletes. His accomplishments included the Boston Athletic Associations 50-yard title, the indoor All-State 50-yard champ,
the outdoor state champ in the 100-yard dash, the indoor New England champ in the 40-yard dash, a 3x
Champion New England 100 yard champ, the New
England and AAU 60-yard champion the Greater Boston 100 and 220 yard dash Champion.
At Villanova University his main events were the 220
and 440. In one particular 4x220 relay it was said by a
local newspaper that “Excellent baton passing and
blistering 220's by Blackburn and Collymore were the
features”. The highlight of that 1959 season came
when Jim Blackburn along with Joe Manion, Charlie
Stead, and Ed Collymore were crowned the Penn Relays Mile Relay Champions, running a blistering
3:11.80, which is still the Villanova school record. Not
bad for a kid from Philly, two kids from Boston and
the quiet kid from Somerville Mass.