High jump Olympic champion Dick Fosbury, the inventor of the Fosbury flop, is dead. The American died on Sunday, according to the American Athletics Association (USA Track and Field), among others, at the age of 76.
The track and field athlete, whose full name was Richard Douglas Fosbury, had revolutionized his discipline. He developed the technique of crossing the bar backwards. He won the Olympic gold in Mexico City’s Estadio Olimpico on October 20, 1968 with a jump of 2.24 meters. The Fosbury flop thereafter became the standard in high jump, but the namesake retired just a year after his greatest success.
“The jump opened doors for me”
“I am deeply saddened by the passing of Dick Fosbury, a true legend and pioneer in the athletics world,” USA Track and Field chief Max Siegel said on the association’s Twitter account. Fosbury’s legacy will live on as an inspiration to all. “Dick’s innovative technique of the Fosbury Flop revolutionized the high jump and changed the sport forever. His gold medal win at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics not only cemented his place in US Olympic history, but also left an indelible mark on the global athletic community .”
Dick Fosbury, high jump pioneer.
(Photo: PanoramiC/Imago)
“The jump opened doors for me,” Fosbury once said. “I was just lucky enough to be the first. I absolutely believe that otherwise someone else would have invented the technology.” His jumping technique was also the beginning of the end of the “belly roll”, also known as the straddle, which had been common in high jump until then.
