V 12 N. 77 Echo Summit 1968 Olympic Trials

 

Echo Summit Olympic Trials 1968  Clik Here

We have posted above a series of videos of the 1968 Olympic Trials in Echo Summit, California.  It takes some understanding, patience, and acceptance to watch as it is unedited.  There is little or no commentary by announcers of the events as you see them other than what you can hear in the background from the P.A. system.  There are some person to person interviews.   Some of the runners and jumpers are identified, others are not, so you will have to watch this through your personal lens of expertise and interest.  Sometimes it is frustrating as in the second semi final of the 1500 meters as you see the runners starting the last lap, but you do not get to see the finish.  Names, places and all times are not mentioned in most cases.  I was able to pick out Bob Day  winning the 5000 (14:37.4)  Jack Bacheler, in second same time, and Lou Scott (14:53.2) finishing third  for example but others I will have to go back and check for more of the official results.  

The layout of the facilities at Echo Summit are incredibly beautiful,  and it is clear that it was not meant to be kept there indefinitely as a monument or training site, despite Payton Jordan's plea that it remain.  He mentions that Bill Bowerman was doing medical research, but there was also a lot othe same being done by Jack Daniels as well.  The place has long been torn up and given back to nature.  The meet has the ambiance of a county track meet, but the performances are world class.    The pole vault runway set diagonally to the straightaways and  virtually in the infield forest is beautiful but certainly not spectator friendly.  Same can be said of the long jump runway.  There is footage of a 17' 8" WR by Bob Seagren and a 27' 6" leap by Bob Beamon who seems very pleased with his effort.  Just wait a few weeks, Bob. No Fosbury here.   I'm sure many of you will be able to add more info to things you see in this film.  If you care, let me know and I'll add your views to this blog.  

There are interviews with John Carlos, Payton Jordan, Harry Edwards, Eldridge Cleaver and George Forman.  Does anybody recognize the interviewers or know if they ever made it in their field?  Carlos's interview is about his not getting a WR recognition for his 200m due to the brush spikes he was wearing.  Least that's what I recall.  There are opposing views of the proposed boycott of the 68 Games presented which eventually were not boycotted.  All in all this is a very interesting piece of historical footage which people who lived in those times will find very informative and certainly show us how far we had to go then in race relations and remind us that we still have a long way to go today.  This is also during the middle of the Viet Nam War and nothing is mentioned of it.  Indeed the world was in revolt in 1968, the Prague Spring was just terminated by Russia's invasion of Czechoslovakia, there were riots in Germany and France by students and leftists, Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy had been killed.  And in the middle of all this we held an incredible track meet.

Thanks to Ricky Quintana for sending this to us via Bruce Kritzler.

Below is the source recognition of this video which was found on Internet Archives.

We are merely passing this on to our readers and not seeking any profit from it.

George:

I attended the 1968 Olympic Trials at S. Lake Tahoe.

It was truly awe inspiring to watch world class runners perform

on a all weather track carved out of the forest at S. Lake Tahoe!

Never Forgot it!

John Bork

Echo Sum

by

 

KCRA TVE

Echo Summit Olympic Trials  Publication Date 1968

 KCRA-TV, Olympics -- Olympic Trials

Description: A nineteen-minute film containing footage of the Olympic trials at Echo Summit, California in 1968. The film includes interviews with  including bronze-medal winner John Carlos, Coach Payton Jordan, and various track and field events. Also seen are Dr. Harry Edwards and Black Panther leader Eldridge Cleaver who supported a ban on the 1968 Olympics in Mexico. 

 

John Wesley Carlos is an American former track and field athlete and professional football player. He was the bronze-medal winner in the 200 meters at the 1968 Summer Olympics, and his Black Power salute on the podium with Tommie Smith caused much political controversy. 

Source: HD Transfer from the original 16mm film elements

Accession number: 1983/131; VAM 067

Copyright: Rights are owned by the Center for Sacramento History (CSH). CSH has given the Internet Archive permission to provide access to the digitized work online. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of CSH. In addition, the reproduction of some materials may be restricted by terms of gift or purchase agreements, donor restrictions, privacy and publicity rights, licensing, and trademarks. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owner. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.

Access-restricted-item

 

true

Addeddate

 

2018-06-04 22:45:43

Closed captioning

 

no

Color

 

Color

Identifier

 

VAM067

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Internet Archive HTML5 Uploader 1.6.3

Sound

 

Sound

Year

 

1968

V 12 N. 76 A New Website for Your Research and Great Reading Trackattic.xyz

 To All Our Readers:

Russ Reabold of Trojan Force has informed us about a new website his group has developed and is developing that will be of great use to Track Fanatics all over the world.  It is still a work in progress but already has a depth that you will appreciate.  He notes that at this time it is a bit top heavy with California things but I find it is still full of great information from multiple sources,  and it includes this blog in it's hardware.

Here is the link   Trackattic

Correction:   Above we incorrectly stated that Trackattic.xyz is a project of Russ Reabold and Trojan Force.   Trojan Force is not  a part of this.  Gary Wright and Russ Reabold are the co-developers of this project.    George

V 12 N. 75 Track Officiating 101

 And now for something entirely different:

 

Actually this is street smarts 101   or what to do when someone wants to sell you some bit coin certificates, and it's that or getting your wife an anniversary present.

https://youtube.com/shorts/Ky2vC4WDqbs?feature=share    

V 12 N. 74 Owen Hewett, A Champion for Everyone Who Knew Him

 Owen "Bully" Hewett died last week.  Most of you are probably scratching your heads wondering who he was.  It you ran track at the University of Oklahoma anytime from 1956 onward, you know of whom I am speaking.   Bully as he was best known was an equipment manager to begin back then.  Somehow the coaches Bill Carroll and John Jacobs took him under their wing and named him their equipment manager.  But in reality it was Bully who took us under his wings.  As the obituary notes, Bully was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at an early age.  It affected him physically and  verbally, but he was a guy who was always able to get his point across.  He taught us the meaning of courage and not giving up.  And in the long term the program benefited over and over and over from Bully's generosity in time, talent and funding for various track and field projects as well as women's volleyball and gymnastics.  The varsity locker room is named after him and he has funded an athletic scholarship.  He served many years as president of the Spike Club.  We will all miss you, Bully.     George Brose  

OBITUARY

Owen Merritt Hewett

20 MARCH, 1938 – 16 OCTOBER, 2022

IN THE CARE OF

Primrose Funeral Service & Sunset Memorial Park Cemetery

OOwen Merritt Hewett, 84, of Norman Oklahoma passed away Sunday October 16, 2022. Owen was born to Elva Anne Trueblood and Charles Merritt Hewett on March 20, 1938 in Baltimore Maryland.

Owen attended elementary through high school in Catonsville Maryland. After finishing high school, Owen achieved a Bachelor’s of Science degree from the University of Oklahoma in 1960, then achieved a Masters in Mathematics from North Carolina University in 1961. Owen was an equipment manager for multiple sports in high school, and an equipment manager for the OU track team while attending OU. Owen went on to work as a finance consultant in the banking industry.

Owen was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy at 23 months old but never let his diagnosis stop him from succeeding. He succeeded in academics, business and in being a good friend to so many that were fortunate enough to have crossed his path. He had a great sense of humor and had no shortage of jokes.

In 1990 the Owen Hewett award was established. It is awarded to a track and field athlete that demonstrates outstanding achievements both in the classroom and out on the track. Also in 1990, the locker room at OU’s John Jacob’s track facility was named for Mr. Hewett.

Owen was a truly devoted OU fan! He loved football and was a season ticket holder even at the time of his death. He was also the CFO of the “Spike Club” an organization that raised funds for the OU track team. Owen also supported the women’s volleyball and gymnastics teams.

Owen is preceded in death by; parents, mother Elva Anne Trueblood and father Charles Merritt Hewett, multiple close friends and teammates, and his loving canine companion Freckles.

Owen is survived by his faithful dog Winthrop.

Although Owen died with no family, he will be deeply missed by many close friends and an amazing team of caregivers.

A memorial service will be held for Owen on Thursday, October 27, 2022 at 11:00AM at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Norman.

George:

Owen - RIP

You Meant so much to so many........

Some didn't realize this until much later in time!

John Bork

DARRYL TAYLOR	3:00 PM (1 hour ago)
to me

George-Thanks for sharing. Sorry for the news of yet another great one gone. We are in that zone for

 sure. Like the veterans from WWll the pace of our mentors now accelerate into sadness. 

Life’s cycle all around us.    DARRYLMTAYLOR 

S

to me

   As you already know, most schools have a Bully Hewett.  Sometimes they are gruff, yet still have the best for everyone in mind.  Others are kind and helpful without having to go through all that gruffness.  Nevertheless, they are present through the decades and always make a behind-the-scenes difference.  Good story.  Bill Schnier

Stephen Morelock	3:36 PM (33 minutes ago)
t

Very nice, George. Thank you for posting. SVM 

Thanks very much for this. I knew Owen very well having been on the team from 1955 to 1958.

 He was an inspiration to us all.

 

Jim Denton

V 12 N. 73 Yes, Shakespeare Knew Cross Country

 

Shakespeare Knew Cross Country  link,  click here

Our annual visit to that time of chivalry when men gathered on the soggy fields of France to do battle for the right to call themselves, Champs of Western  Europe. 

V 12 N. 72 Bill Nieder, U. of Kansas Olympic Shot Put Champion R.I.P.

Heard today from Michael Solomon about the passing of Bill Nieder.  After years of domination by Perry O'Brien,  Bill Nieder brought shot putting to the next level.  This was in the pre-PED era.   He too was looking over his shoulder at the new kid on the block, Dallas Long.   But when the cards were on the table in Rome in 1960, Nieder was the champ.  After his days of throwing ended he had a very brief career as a boxer, and to his credit saw that some other form of work might be a good career move.  Bill Nieder was 89 years old.   George

A couple of comments have come in regarding my statement above concerning steroid and/or PED use.  Those readers feel that PED's were in use by 1960.   However no one claimed  that Bill Nieder was juiced.  And it was not as widespread as more recent times.  For sure the Eastern bloc countries were a case of institutionalized cheating in that era and continued up into modern times.

I do remember that some of the football players at Oklahoma were going down to a gym in Baton Rouge, LA in the summer and coming back a bit larger than God intended.  

Lawrence, KU track legend and Olympic gold medalist Bill Nieder dies at 89 Matt Tait Story by Matt Tait Monday, October 10, 2022 

Bill Nieder grew up in Lawrence and won a gold medal in the 1960 Rome Olympics by putting the shot 64 feet, 6 3/4 inches, a world record. He was a 1952 graduate of Lawrence's Liberty Memorial High School. Former Lawrence high school legend and University of Kansas shot put standout Bill Nieder, who held significant records in the event at both schools, died last week, his family confirmed to the Journal-World. Nieder was 89. Known best for winning the gold medal at the 1960 Olympics in Rome, Nieder might never have dabbled in the shot put if not for a football injury during his sophomore season at KU. Taken out after the whistle on a play against TCU in the season opener in 1953, Nieder tore up his knee and nearly had to have part of his leg amputated. Doctors at the time told him his athletic career had reached its end, but the fiery Nieder was undeterred. It might have been the end of his football career, but so much still awaited him. “He always told me that football was his main love,” his nephew, Mike Nieder, told the Journal-World on Monday. “And maybe that’s what motivated him to do so well in the shot because that was all he could do.” All he could do was pretty darn good. A two-time Olympic medalist, Nieder won silver in 1956 in Melbourne before winning gold four years later. But even that wasn’t a walk in the park. At the Olympic trials leading up to the 1960 Olympics, a pre-trials injury led to Nieder finishing fourth in the shot put and he qualified for the team as an alternate. As Team USA prepped for Rome, Nieder responded by breaking the world record in one of the final meets of the season. Mike Nieder said his uncle used to tell him that one of the three team members came down with a “mystery illness” that allowed Nieder to join the team and win gold. One other story Mike Nieder recalled hearing was that of a bet between his uncle and KU legend Wilt Chamberlain. Chamberlain, Mike Nieder recalled, bet Nieder that he could outdo him in the shot put. He did. But there was a catch. Rather than using the standard technique, Chamberlain stood backwards and used the leverage of his long arms while launching the shot over his head with both hands. The throw would have been illegal in a track and field setting, but Mike Nieder said it won the bet. Long before he became an Olympic champion, Nieder set the shot put record at LHS that stood for 59 years. Nieder always said he expected his high school mark to be broken and that he would treat the LHS athlete who broke it to a steak dinner. That happened in 2012, when Nieder flew from California to Lawrence to treat former LHS track standout Blake Hocking to the meal. Hocking’s record of 62 feet, 9 inches, was two feet better than Nieder’s mark. He became the country’s first prep athlete to break the 60-foot barrier with a 12-pound shot and, later, the first college athlete to break the 60-foot mark with a 16-pound shot. Nieder owned the world record three times before his career was finished and he went into the National Track & Field Hall of Fame in 2006. After he was finished competing, Nieder stayed close to the sports world, working for 3M to help develop the world’s first ever artificial athletic turf. He also later helped sell synthetic track surfaces. According to the family, Nieder passed away peacefully at his home in Angels Camp, California, where he lived for the past two decades, splitting time between his home there and a home in Maui. The family will host a celebration of life for Nieder on Nov. 13 at Ironstone Vineyards in Murphys, California.