Celebrating Mexico

The 1968, Ciudad de Mexico, Olympic Games ushered the modern era of athletics. From the cinder track of Rome and Tokyo the athletes had now at their disposal synthetic super-fast tracks. But the 1968 Games were also emblematic since they brought to the track the protests that had shaken the world only months before.

The IAAF website is celebrating the 50th anniversary of these pivotal Games with a series of articles. The first is on the Games themselves, the second on the black power salute of T. Smith and J. Carlos, while the third is devoted to B. Beamon's "perfect jump". Reading these articles triggered in me a bout of nostalgia and I decided to succumb to it. 

In autumn 1968 I had completed my studies of Physics in the University of Athens and was preparing for the graduation exams. It was the last "relaxed" summer of my life: after graduation I would have to do my military service at the end of which I would leave for France. (I went there in order to work for a Phd and, having obtained it, I spent the next forty years as a professional scientist working at the (french) national scientific research centre).  
We are talking about 1968 when even the idea of internet did not exist and where TV was just starting in Greece and a live broadcast of the Mexico Games was out of question. 
So, the only way to keep abreast of what was happening in the athletics world was the press, and in particular the (excellent) sports' greek newspaper: the Echo of Sports (Αθλητική Ηχώ in greek).

My mother was in charge of buying the newspaper and wake me up so that I could read the news without further delay. I still remember the moment I saw the incredible 8.90 m on the front page. Going into the Olympics Beamon was the number one favourite of the long jump. He had completely dominated the season and had even a wind-aided jump at 8.39 m, beyond the world record of 8.35 m or R. Boston and I. Ter Ovanesian. After fouling his two first jumps in the qualifiers he did make it, just behind R. Boston. And then, in a final, where the other protagonists, Boston and TerOvanesian, started with rather "tame" jumps of 8.16 and 8.12 m respectively, Beamon killed the competition with his 8.90 m first jump, 55 cm beyond the existing world record.  

Beamon triple-jumping (but his technique is really so-so)

Clearly Beamon's is the feat that marked the history of the Games, but the Mexico Olympics (and we are talking here about athletics) were memorable for a host of reasons. How can we forget the triple jump where G. Gentile broke the world record twice only to finish third. V. Saneyev had to improve Gentile's mark in order to go to first place and when N. Prudencio passed him he broke the world record again in order to save the gold medal. Five world records in a single event! D. Fosbury revolutionised the high jump, showing the world that his "back layout" jump (soon to become the "Fosbury flop") could win olympic gold. Mexico was the 4th and final stop in A. Oerter's gold medal career. (Speaking of Oerter, he did try to qualify for the US team in 1980 but finished 4th. Still, he did throw 69.46 m at the age of 43. The common lore is that on an occasion, filming for TV, Oerter threw the discus at circa 75 m well beyond, even today's, world record). C. Besson created the surprise when winning the women's 400 m, beating L. Board, in a race decided at the photo-finish. (Besson was going to lose an important race at the photo-finish the following year, when she was beaten by her compatriot N. Duclos at the 1969 Europeans. At least she had the satisfaction of sharing the world record with the latter. Their official time was 51.7  (in fact 51.72 and 51.74 respectively) improving Sin Kim Dan's record of 51.9 s). Mexico was also the only major international appearance of Chi Cheng (third in the 80 m hurdles), an exceptional athlete, and the second biggest taiwanese name in athletics of the 60s, after Yang Chuan-Kwang. 

T. Smith celebrating (he could have waited one more second)

I am not going to write about the "salute". It is by now part of our inheritance, a great moment for two (in fact, three) sports heroes. I was great admirer of T. Smith at the time. Had his track career not been curtailed (thanks also to the president of the IOC, A. Brundage, to whom I have dedicated a detailed article) a time close to 19.5 s would have been possible as well as a world record over 400 m. Just look at the photo, where T. Smith starts celebrating with 10 metres to go.

Papanicolaou after his world record (I was in the stadium)

But the moment all of us greek athletics fans were waiting for was the pole vault. C. Papanicolaou was one of the contenders even for the gold medal. He had jumped 5.30 m in 1967 in the same stadium where the Olympics were held. Going into the final, Bleznitsov and d'Encausse were eliminated at 5.35 while Pennel passed on third attempt. Papanicolaou having  secured the height at first try was en route for a medal. But then he failed thrice at 5.40 m which was cleared by favourites Seagren and Nordwig on second and third try respectively and by a practically unknown vaulter, C. Schiprowski, who improved his 5.10 m personal best by 30 cm in order to grab silver. That was a major disappointment for us, Papanicolaou fans. Fortunately he did not let this mishap discourage him and he went on to establish, with 5.49 m, a world record in 1970. Papanicolaou was not the only unlucky vaulter in those games. J. Pennel cleared the height of 5.40 m at his second attempt, which would have given him the bronze medal, but his pole passed under the uprights. At the time that sufficed in order to invalidate the jump and so he ended the competition in 5th place. That ridiculous rule, leftover from the pre-fiberglass era where jumpers were using super-long poles, was revoked the next year.

PS And, yes, I have been wondering why the IAAF did not publish anything on Fosbury and his revolutionary style. Well, we did not have to wait for very long: an (excellent) article did make its appearance on the IAAF site today.