Track History
Top 100 T&F Olympians Of All Time
Sunday, August 10th, 2008
Ever heard of Raymond Ewry? No? Don’t worry - neither have I. For that matter, ever heard of the standing long jump? I’ve heard of that one, but I couldn’t tell you how far a decent jump* would be (12′, maybe?). Anyway, Ray Ewry takes first place on the list of the 100 Greatest Track & Field Olympians of all time, according to a points system devised by Calvin Shulman of UK’s Times Online.
Can’t get enough of this kind of stuff? Then check out Shulman’s list from last year of the Top 100 athletes at the World Athletics Championships 1983-2005.
Quick! Name the Third Man In History to Run a Sub Four Minute Mile!
Saturday, July 19th, 2008[Here's a "best-of" article that I resurrected from my old blog Finish Line Pundit. I was reminded of it when new USATF CEO Doug Logan mentioned Ron Delaney in his teleconference yesterday.]
Quick! Name the third man in history to run a sub four minute mile!
Let’s see, Roger Bannister of Great Britain did it first on May 6th, 1954 with a time of 3:59.4, then John Landy of Australia quickly followed on June 21st, 1954 with a time of 3:57.9, then…
Wes Santee? No, he came close, but – unfortunately – the "Ashland Antelope" never did better than a 4:00.5, thanks to the myopia exhibited by the oligarchical power mongers of the AAU prior to the Steve Prefontaine-inspired Amateur Sports Act of 1978, an act that stripped the AAU of its vice-like grip on Track & Field in the United States. For all of the moaning and groaning we hear about the USATF and the way it governs the sport, it’s certainly much better than the AAU ever was.
Ron Delaney? No, he was 7th.
Jim Bailey? No. Although he was the first man to break the four-minute barrier on American soil, Bailey, an Australian, was only the 6th man to break the barrier.
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