Epilogue – A Growing Friendship by Rob Leachman From the “Great Rivalries of Olympic Track and Field” Series This Series For Daley Thompson after winning his second gold medal, his decathlon future seemed limitless, at least in his own mind. He had been open about his desire to win three gold medals. At the time, … Read more
“Titanic Battle in LA” by Rob Leachman From the “Great Rivalries of Olympic Track and Field” Series This Series Everyone likes a good rivalry, especially the media and particularly in the runup to an Olympic Games. The Thompson-Hingsen rivalry was gaining notoriety in the track and field world. And every four years, the fan base … Read more
Jurgen Hingsen, the “German Hercules” by Rob Leachman From the “Great Rivalries of Olympic Track and Field” Series This Series In the history of the decathlon, some of the greatest performances have been an outgrowth of intense rivalries, with athletes pushing each other to higher and higher scores. Rafer Johnson and C.K. Yang, Dan O’Brien … Read more
“A World Record and a Gold Medal” by Rob Leachman From the “Great Rivalries of Olympic Track and Field” Series This Series As the Olympic year of 1980 began, Daley Thompson was just twenty-one years old, had never won a major international decathlon competition, and the previous year had only competed in one decathlon, a … Read more
“Daley Thompson – A Reluctant Decathlete” by Rob Leachman From the “Great Rivalries of Olympic Track and Field” Series This Series As Daley Thompsons strode into the discus ring for the last of his three attempts in the event at the Los Angeles Olympics, the defending champion, gold medal favorite, and arguably the best decathlete … Read more
“A Fierce Rivalry and Genuine Animosity“ by Rob Leachman From the “Great Rivalries of Olympic Track and Field” Series “I can’t really hate people and thrive on beating people. That’s a negative thing. Hate can really turn on you—even though John Powell is an ass and I love to beat him,” as Mac Wilkins wryly … Read more
“A Three-Way Battle in Montreal” by Rob Leachman From the “Great Rivalries of Olympic Track and Field” Series Just as two Americans, Mac Wilkins and John Powell, were solidifying their positions atop the discus world, a talented athlete from East Germany, arguably the most athletic discus thrower of his time, injected himself into the intense … Read more
by Rob Leachman So, who is the greatest men’s shot putter of all time? As a recap, this series was completed as an attempt to objectively determine if, as many assume, Ryan Crouser is in fact the GOAT in this track and field event. To complete this process, a set of criteria was identified that … Read more
by Rob Leachman Part Three – Ryan Crouser He knew it was a good one the instant he released it, triumphantly raising both arms in the air as he watched the shot land near the back edge of the Hayward Field throwing sector. As he later reflected, “I was celebrating on that one almost before … Read more
by Rob Leachman Part Two – Parry O’Brien A two-time gold medalist, a three-time Olympic medalist, and a member of what at the time was an unprecedented four Olympic teams. The holder of sixteen world records in the shot put, including the first 60-foot throw, and an unprecedented winning streak of 116 competitions. And the … Read more
