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Bob Beamon

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Bob Beamon
Beamon in 1992
Personal information
Birth nameRobert Beamon
NationalityAmerican
Born (1946-08-29) August 29, 1946 (age 78)[1]
South Jamaica, Queens, New York City[2]
Height6 ft 3 in (191 cm)[1]
Weight154 lb (70 kg)[1]
Sport
SportTrack and field
EventLong jump
College teamThe University of Texas at El Paso
Medal record
Representing the  United States
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1968 Mexico City Long jump
Pan American Games
Silver medal – second place 1967 Winnipeg Long jump

Robert Beamon (born August 29, 1946) is an American former track and field athlete, best known for his world record in the long jump at the Mexico City Olympics in 1968. By jumping 8.90 m (29 ft 2+1⁄4 in), he broke the existing record by a margin of 55 cm (21+3⁄4 in) and his world record stood for almost 23 years until it was broken in 1991 by Mike Powell. The jump is still the Olympic record and the second-longest in history unassisted by wind.

Early life

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Robert Beamon was born in South Jamaica, Queens, New York, to Naomi Brown Beamon[3] and grew up in the New York Housing Authority's Jamaica Houses.[2] When Beamon was eight months old, his mother died from tuberculosis, and, as a result of his stepfather's incarceration, he was placed into the care of his maternal grandmother, Bessie.[3]

When Beamon was attending Jamaica High School, Larry Ellis, a renowned track coach, discovered him. Beamon later became part of the All-American track and field team.[vague] Beamon began his college career at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University to be close to his ill grandmother.[4] After her death, he transferred to the University of Texas at El Paso, where he received a track and field scholarship.[5]

In 1965, Beamon set a national high school triple jump record and was second in the long jump. In 1967, he won the AAU indoor title and earned a silver medal at the Pan American Games, both in the long jump.[6]

Beamon along with eleven other Black athletes were dropped from the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) track and field team the week following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. for participating in a boycott of competition with Brigham Young University because of what has been described as the Book of Mormon's racist teachings.[7][8] Despite losing his athletic scholarship, Beamon returned to UTEP to continue his studies after the Mexico City Olympics. Fellow Olympian Ralph Boston became his unofficial coach.[9][10]

1968 Summer Olympics

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Beamon leaping
Bob Beamon setting a long jump world record at the 1968 Games in Mexico City

Beamon entered the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City as the favorite to win the gold medal, having won 22 of the 23 meets he had competed in that year, including a career-best of 8.33 m (27 ft 3+3⁄4 in) and a world's best of 8.39 m (27 ft 6+1⁄4 in) that was ineligible for the record books due to excessive wind assistance. That year, he won the AAU and NCAA indoor long jump and triple jump titles and the AAU outdoor long jump title.[6] He came close to missing the Olympic final, overstepping on his first two attempts in qualifying. With only one chance left, Beamon re-measured his approach run from a spot in front of the board and made a fair jump that advanced him to the final. There, he faced the two previous gold-medal winners, fellow American Ralph Boston (1960) and Lynn Davies of Great Britain (1964), and twice bronze medallist Igor Ter-Ovanesyan of the Soviet Union.[11]

Beamon smiling
Bob Beamon

On October 18, Beamon set a world record for the long jump with a first jump of 8.90 m (29 ft 2+1⁄4 in), bettering the existing record by 55 cm (21+3⁄4 in). When the announcer called out the distance for the jump, Beamon—unfamiliar with metric measurements—still did not realize what he had done.[12] When his teammate and coach Ralph Boston told him that he had broken the world record by nearly two feet, his legs gave way and an astonished and overwhelmed Beamon suffered a brief cataplexy attack brought on by the emotional shock,[13] and collapsed to his knees, his body unable to support itself, placing his hands over his face.[14] The defending Olympic champion Lynn Davies told Beamon, "You have destroyed this event", and in sports jargon, a new adjective—Beamonesque—came into use to describe spectacular feats.[15]

Before Beamon's jump, the world record had been broken thirteen times since 1901, with an average increase of 6 cm (2+1⁄4 in) and the largest increase being 15 cm (6 in). In the years following the jump, the mark was considered unbeatable. It took 12 years for another human being to jump 28 feet, much less 29.[16] Beamon's world record stood for 23 years until it was finally broken in 1991 when Mike Powell jumped 8.95 m (29 ft 4+1⁄4 in) at the World Championships in Tokyo,[17] but Beamon's jump is still the Olympic record and 56 years later remains the second-longest wind-legal jump in history.[citation needed]

Later life

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Shortly after the Mexico City Olympics, Beamon was drafted by the Phoenix Suns in the 15th round of the 1969 NBA draft but never played in an NBA game.[18] In 1972, he graduated from Adelphi University with a degree in sociology.[19]

In 1977, Beamon became a track coach at Alliant International University (formerly known as U.S. International University) in San Diego.[20]

Beamon has worked in various roles to promote youth athleticism, including collaborations with former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Beamon's work at the athletic programs of several universities.[21] He is a graphic artist with work exhibited by the Art of the Olympians (AOTO),[22] and was the former chief executive of the Art of the Olympians Museum in Fort Myers, Florida.[23] In 2024, Beamon played percussion on a hip-hop jazz recording.[24]

Honors

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Beamon is in the National Track and Field Hall of Fame, and when the United States Olympic Hall of Fame started to induct athletes in 1983, Beamon was one of the first inductees.[19][25] There is a Bob Beamon Street in El Paso, Texas.[26]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Bob Beamon". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on April 17, 2020. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  2. ^ a b "Record Breaking Olympian, Bob Beamon, Honored by City of New York - Robert E. Cornegy Jr". New York City Council. September 26, 2018. Archived from the original on January 11, 2020. Retrieved October 4, 2019 – via council.nyc.gov.
  3. ^ a b "Robert Beamon". TheHistoryMakers. Retrieved November 6, 2022.
  4. ^ Schwartz, Larry. "Beamon made sport's greatest leap". ESPN.com. ESPN. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
  5. ^ Williams, Lena. "TRACK AND FIELD; Soothing an Old Ache", The New York Times, January 1, 2000. Accessed November 7, 2007.
  6. ^ a b Bob Beamon Archived June 30, 2015, at the Wayback Machine. sports-reference.com
  7. ^ Lena Williams, "Track and Field; Soothing an Old Ache", The New York Times, January 1, 2000.
  8. ^ Jack Olsen, The black athlete: a shameful story, pp 65-76. Time-Life Books, 1968.
  9. ^ Bob Beamon Biography at thehistorymakers.com
  10. ^ Craig Collisson, The BSU takes on BYU and the UW Athletics Program, 1970
  11. ^ Bagchi, Rob (November 23, 2011). "50 stunning Olympic moments No2: Bob Beamon's great leap forward". The Guardian.
  12. ^ "CCTV International". Cctv.com. October 15, 2008. Retrieved October 29, 2011.
  13. ^ Redgrave, Steve (October 13, 2011). Great Olympic Moments. Headline. pp. 16–. ISBN 978-0-7553-6339-1.
  14. ^ "Bob Beamon". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved October 29, 2011.
  15. ^ IOC Athlete Profile: "His achievement inspired a new word in the English language: 'Beamonesque', meaning an athletic feat so dramatically superior to previous feats that it overwhelms the imagination."
  16. ^ Lorge, Barry (July 29, 1980). "Mennea Nips Wells In Olympic Drama". The Washington Post.
  17. ^ "Michael Anthony Powell". International Olympic Committee. Retrieved October 18, 2024.
  18. ^ "NBA.com: Draft Oddities". www.NBA.com. Archived from the original on June 10, 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
  19. ^ a b "The HistoryMakers". The HistoryMakers. Archived from the original on September 30, 2015. Retrieved October 21, 2015.
  20. ^ The Sacramento Bee, June 3, 1977. p. 36. Retrieved December 29, 2020
  21. ^ "Robert 'Bob' Beamon". SpecialOlympics.org. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
  22. ^ "Bob Beamon: The Beamon dream". The Independent. July 31, 2012. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
  23. ^ "Beamon takes official role at Olympic art museum". www.insidethegames.biz. August 27, 2011. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
  24. ^ Carpenter, Les (July 12, 2024). "He's 77, an Olympic legend, and just made a hip-hop jazz album". The Washington Post.
  25. ^ "Notable US Olympic Hall of Fame inductees". NBC Sports. April 20, 2009. Retrieved June 3, 2019.
  26. ^ "Bob Beamon Street" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved August 4, 2024.

Further reading

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  • Beamon, Bob, and Milana Walter Beamon. (1999). The Man Who Could Fly: The Bob Beamon Story. Columbus, MS: Genesis Press. ISBN 1-885478-89-5.
  • Schaap, Dick. (1976). The Perfect Jump. New York: New American Library.
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bob Beamon.
Records
Preceded by Men's Long Jump World Record Holder
October 18, 1968 – August 30, 1991 		Succeeded by
Awards
Preceded by Track & Field Athlete of the Year
1968 		Succeeded by
Achievements
Preceded by Men's Long Jump Best Year Performance
1968 		Succeeded by
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