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
