The 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China will be getting underway in just a couple of weeks.
As usual, I will be looking forward to the track and field competition, where the action is always hot and heavy and the highlight of the Olympic Games. It is what I live for. (I’m also looking forward to seeing the USA assert their dominance in men’s basketball as well, but that’s another column.)
This year’s Olympics also will represent the 40-year anniversary of a remarkable 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City where we saw probably the most impressive collection of talent on one team in the history of the Olympics. Many people may point to the NBA Dream Team that won the basketball gold medal in 1992, but he 1968 USA Men’s Track and Field team was every bit as talented and successful as the original Dream Team.
If I could go back in time to see one special sporting event, it would the to see the ’68 men’s track team in Mexico City. I was only three years old when this all went down, so I could not fully comprehend what I was watching. I wish I was a little older, then I could really talk about this group with the same intensity and enthusiasm as my father and his contemporaries.
Winning gold medals was a foregone conclusion with the ’68 team. Whenever one of them stepped on the track, a world record was being set with the old mark being shattered. Not only did they win 12 gold medals, but they also set several world records that stood for at least two decades. They also gave us one of the most poignant moments in the history of sports. It was a tremendous showcase for African-Americans on the world’s biggest stage.
The most vivid memory of the games was the 200-meter dash when Tommie Smith won the gold medal in a world record 19.83 seconds and teammate John Carlos finished third for the bronze. Their gloved-fist salute on the awards stand to protest the treatment of African Americans is one of the signature events in Olympic and American sports history.
The roll call of great performances from this team was unbelievable. You had the great Jim Hines winning the 100-meter dash in a world record 9.95 seconds with teammate Charlie Green finishing third. In the 400-meter dash, Lee Evans set a world record in 43.86 while leading an American sweep with Larry James and Ron Freeman right behind. Willie Davenport set new world record in the 110-meter high hurdles with Ervin Hall finishing in third place.
The 4×100-meter relay team of Hines, Green, Melvin Pinder and Ronnie Ray Smith set a new world record in 38.24. Another world record was set in the 4×400 when the team of Evans, Freeman, James and Vincent Matthews turned in a 2:56.16, whipping the rest of the field by more than three seconds.
However, the most spectacular record of the Olympics came when Bob Beamon sailed to new heights in winning the long jump with his gravity-defying mark of 29 feet 2 ½ inches, breaking the old world mark by more than 2 ½ feet. Also in the field, Al Oerter won his fourth gold medal in the discus, Bob Seagren won the pole vault, Dick Fosbury won the high jump while introducing his new “Fosbury Flop” to the world. Bill Toomey won the decathlon and the distinction of world’s greatest athlete.
We are not likely to see such domination from one team in upcoming Olympics with so many more competitive athletes around the world. Hopefully, in the many hours of coverage and features that will be devoted to the Olympics, the folks at NBC will tell the story of this Dream Team.
Coaches clinic
Members of the University of Missouri football coaching staff will be in St. Louis on Friday to conduct a free coaching clinic at the Wohl Recreational Center. The inaugural “Covidien Football Coaches Clinic” will be held from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. The event is presented by the Demetrious Johnson Charitable Foundation, Herbert Hoover Boys & Girls Club and Hot 104.1. Space is limited for this free event. For more information, call Lawanda at (314) 289-5320.
