Melanie Thomas nee Valerio following her Olympic Gold Medal performance in 1996. (Photo U.S. Swimming)
And in my 257th episode of Conversations, I had the opportunity to speak to an Olympic Gold Medalist:-)
Back in Atlanta during the 1996 Summer Games, Melanie Thomas was known as Melanie Valerio (her maiden name) when she was part of the women’s 4×100 meter Gold Medal-winning American team. She was a part of the team two years later that won the Gold at the Swimming World Championships in Perth, Australia, as well.
I’m speaking to Melanie in this episode as part of my ongoing series focusing on fans of the so-called college non-revenue sports. During her college days, Melanie was a 15-time All-American at the University of Virginia back in the early 1990s, was twice named the Cavaliers’ MVP, and was named the 1990 Atlantic Coast Conference Swimmer of the Year. The Cavaliers’ women’s swimming program is notable because it has won the past six consecutive National Championships, including this year’s title by a whopping 208.5 points over runner up Stanford University. Those six straight titles is the most consecutive wins in the history of NCAA Division I Women’s Swimming and places UVa in fourth place in overall titles, trailing only Stanford (11), Texas (7), and Georgia (7).
During our time with Melanie, we discuss what led a Youngstown, Ohio, native into the pool in the first place (Spoiler: It’s an older sibling) and then to Charlottesville, Virginia, where she became the UVa’s first Olympic Gold Medalist. We also learn what it’s like to be a high-level swimmer, the regimented lifestyle, and spending 50 years in the pool as a competitive swimmer. Of course, we also discover what it’s like for Melanie to return to Charlottesville these days as one of the program’s original greats and see the success of the current iteration of the Cavaliers.
My Conversation with University of Virginia women’s swimming legend, Melanie Thomas.
Can you name these three, from left to right? What are the circumstances occurring during this photo?
It was 56 years ago this week (October 16, 1968) that American Tommie Smith and John Carlos finished first and third in the Olympic 200 meters in Mexico City. The silver medalist was Australian Peter Norman.
Smith’s time of 19.83 established a new World Record while Norman’s 20.06 set a new Australian Record; a record that still stands today.
American sprinters Tommie Smith (center) and John Carlos (right) raise their black-gloved fists on the Olympic medal podium in Mexico City to signify Black Power. Smith, the gold medalist in the 200-meter race, and Carlos, the bronze medalist, were kicked out of the Games for their overtly political statement. (Photo by Sports Illustrated’s Neil Leifer)
Beyond those records, it was that night’s medal ceremony that is, quite likely, most remembered. Smith and Carlos stood shoeless on the podium (depicting African-American poverty) with a black-gloved fist held aloft (Black Power salute). All three individuals were actually part of a wider movement, the Olympic Project for Human Rights (OPHR), and like the two others on the podium, Norman wore an OPHR patch on his warm up in solidarity.
This alternate image shows the OPHR patch visible on their warm ups.
For a deeper dive into Norman and what became of him, check out this excellent Yahoo!Sports article from 2021 written by Jeff Eisenberg. Interesting to note that Smith and Carlos served as pall bearers at Norman’s funeral in 2006.
The 1968 200-meter race.
Just to review, The Fan Teaser was the creation of former Ann Arbor News Sports Editor Geoff Larcom. Longtime friend and fellow Ann Arbor News alum, Pat Schutte, took it to heights previously unknown. We aim to keep it alive here at The Sports Fan Project. The cropped photo and the accompanying clue give you an idea as to who or what the image is of. We invite you to use the Comment option to take a crack at solving the Teaser and, if you’re so inclined, participate in some good-spirited banter with your fellow sports fans. The Fan Teaser will appear each Friday morning with the reveal coming to you Sunday.
Sometimes competition takes a backseat. This was one such occasion.
Fifty-two years ago this week, a group of eight Palestinian militants from the group known Black September compromised Israeli quarters in the Olympic Village during the Munich Summer Games, killed two and took nine others hostage. It led to the first suspension of the Games in modern Olympic history.
Nearly 24 hours later, a shootout occurred at a nearby airport as the terrorists attempted to flee to Cairo, Egypt. The incident at the airport led to all nine hostages dying as well five terrorists and one West German police officer.
Here is Britannica’s account of this horrific episode.
A terrorist from the Palestinian militant group, Black September, appearing on a balcony in the Munich Olympic Village, where members of the Israeli team were being held hostage. (Photo from Fairfax Media – The Sydney Morning Herald/Getty Images)
The 1972 Games were the first in Germany since the controversial 1936 Berlin Games which most historians agree allowed Fuhrer Adolf Hitler to expand the Nazi movement.
Interestingly, Avery Brundage was the President of the U.S. Olympic Committe in 1936 when the United States, somewhat controversially, chose to participate in Hitler’s Games. In 1972 he was the International Olympic Committee Chair who, somewhat controversially, announced fewer than 36 hours after the botched hostage rescue attempt that “the games must go on …” to what was a memorial service for the deceased athletes, coaches, and police officer before 80,000 gathered in the Olympic Stadium. After serving as IOC Chair for 20 years, Brundage retired following the Munich Games.
If you’ve not done so, we highly recommend checking out Malcolm Gladwell‘s recent season of “Revisionist History” which takes an episodic deep dive into the 1936 Olympics. Brundage figures prominently in this season.
And if you’re interested in one fan’s rationale for heading back in time to witness these Games in person, here’s my case from December 2023 for doing just that.
A news report from the Munich Summer Olympics in 1972. This from the Associated Press archives.
ESPN did a retrospective of the events years later. Here is some of ABC’s Jim McKay’s work from those days.
Just to review, The Fan Teaser was the creation of former Ann Arbor News Sports Editor Geoff Larcom. Longtime friend and fellow Ann Arbor News alum, Pat Schutte, took it to heights previously unknown. We aim to keep it alive here at The Sports Fan Project. The cropped photo and the accompanying clue give you an idea as to who or what the image is of. We invite you to use the Comment option to take a crack at solving the Teaser and, if you’re so inclined, participate in some good-spirited banter with your fellow sports fans. The Fan Teaser will appear each Friday morning with the reveal coming to you Sunday.
The Summer Games are only 98 days away. Who’s this scorned Olympian from Games gone by?
In a scintillating performance, Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson dropped his 100-meter World Record to 9.79 seconds and claimed the Gold Medal at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. He owned that Gold and the World Record for fewer than 72 hours, however, when a urine sample turned up the steroid, stanozolol. Both accolades were stripped and the Gold was instead awarded to race runner up, Carl Lewis (9.92 seconds).
Johnson later admitted to steroid use from 1981-88 and had his World Record of 9.83 seconds established at the World Championships a year earlier in Rome stripped as well.
Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson pulls away from the field in the 100 meters at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. Three days later, his urine sample showed signs of stanozolol (a steroid) and he was stripped of his gold medal. (Photo by Ronald C. Modra/Sports Illustrated)
Just to review, The Fan Teaser comes courtesy of longtime buddy, Pat Schutte. The cropped photo below and the accompanying clue give you an idea as to who or what the image is of. We invite you to use the Comment option to take a crack at solving the Teaser and, if you’re so inclined, participate in some good-spirited banter with your fellow sports fans. The Fan Teaser will appear each Friday morning with the reveal coming to you Sunday.
An old-school hospital candy striper dropping off the evening meds or, perhaps, something more memorable?
Perhaps no one captured the hearts and imagination of America during the 1980s quite like Mary Lou Retton. The cherubic 16-year-old U.S. gymnast won the Individual All-Around Gold Medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Additionally, she claimed an individual Silver in the Vault, Bronze in the Uneven Bars and Floor, and Silver as part of the U.S. Team.
Mary Lou Retton competing during the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
This all occurred less-than two months after a freak knee injury leading up to the Games that required arthroscopic surgery to repair the injury.
Retton’s medal haul in Los Angeles earned her a Sports Illustrated cover appearance and – along with the Games’ track and field standout, Edwin Moses – the honor as SI‘s “Sportswoman and Sportsman of the Year.”
Retton was recently in the news as she suffered from a severe case of pneumonia that found her hospitalized in an intensive care unit. Good news from Retton’s family in the past week is that she’s now recovering from home, but with a long road ahead.
You’re welcome to read more about Retton in her U.S. Olympic Museum bio here and see key moments of her All-Around performance below.
Just to review, The Fan Teaser comes courtesy of longtime buddy, Pat Schutte. The cropped photo below and the accompanying clue give you an idea as to who or what the image is of. We invite you to use the Comment option to take a crack at solving the Teaser and, if you’re so inclined, participate in some good-spirited banter with your fellow sports fans. The Fan Teaser will appear each Friday morning with the reveal coming to you Sunday.
(About the Series: Based upon my Conversation with guest Derek Meinecke, I’m going back in time to be in the stands at 10 sporting events. This week, it’s #9. You’re able to find links to the previous installments below.)
Jesse Owens salutes the American flag at the medal ceremony for his long jump gold medal at the 1936 Summer Olympics. To Owens’ right is German Luz Long, giving the Nazi salute.
If you’ve read my work – even a little bit – these past 18 months, I feel as though you should be aware I have a fascination with history as well as sports. Therefore, it should come as little surprise that I’d want go back nearly a century to one of the most politically charged sporting events in history: the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany. These Games, and the lead up to them, were a giant propaganda machine on the part of the German’s Nazi Party under the leadership of dictator, Adolf Hitler.
While the entirety of the Games would be fascinating to take in, I’m really climbing into the wayback machine to see one man compete. That man? Jesse Owens.
By the time Owens arrived in Berlin he was an 8-time NCAA Track & Field Champion running for Ohio State University. And, perhaps even more impressive than that feat, was his May 25, 1935, performance at Ferry Field on the campus of the University of Michigan when he equalled or tied four world records on single day at the Big Ten Championships (100-yard, 220-yard, 220-yard low hurdles, and long jump).
To review what Owens accomplished:
August 3, 1936
Owens won the first of his three individual gold medals over a 3-day stretch when he ran the 100-meter dash in 10.3 seconds to edge USA teammate and 2-time Olympic runner-up, Ralph Metcalfe, by a tenth of a second. Following the win, was there or was there not an acknowledgement by Hitler? Several observers, including Owens, indicated there was, but it was neither formal or overly public.
August 4, 1936
For years, Owens had some struggles with the long jump, often times missing his mark and launching too early or fouling out. The struggles continued in Berlin, nearly not qualifying for the final. Once there, he leapt 26-feet, 5-inches to defeat his German opponent, Luz Long, who ran a victory lap arm-in-arm with Owens afterward (in front of Hitler!).
It took a lot of courage for him to befriend me in front of Hitler… I would melt down all the medals and cups I have and they wouldn’t be a plating on the twenty-four karat friendship that I felt for Luz Long at that moment
Jesse Owens
August 5, 1936
Another day, another gold medal. This time it was the 200-meter dash in which Owens ran a 20.7 seconds to best USA teammate Mack Robinson by four tenths of a second. A terrific athlete in his own right, Robinson (a member of the University of Oregon’s Hall of Fame) was slightly overshadowed in his own family as the older brother of Jackie Robinson; the first African-American to play in Major League Baseball.
Owens eases away from the field in this race.
August 9, 1936
Owens was not supposed to participate in the 4×100-meter relay, but a late switch by Team USA coach Lawson Robertson benched Jewish-American sprinters Marty Glickman and Sam Stoller in favor of Owens and 100-meter runner-up, Metcalfe. The Americans won in world record time of 39.8 seconds. The decision to bench Glickman and Stoller was not without controversy. Glickman (who went on to do radio sportscasting in New York City) long asserted it was racially motivated and came from Hitler’s staff to U.S. Olympic Committee Chair Avery Brundage who’d passed it on to Robertson. Incidentaly, August 9th was Stoller’s 21st birthday; he did not attend the event. Also worth noting, Glickman and Stoller were the only two healthy Team USA track athletes to not compete in the Berlin Games. Coincidence?
Owens’ four gold medal track and field performance in the 1936 Olympics was not duplicated until Carl Lewis earned gold in the same four events at the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Games.
As we noted at the top, these Games were as much about pro-Nazi propaganda as they were about competition. Other things worth noting, in addition to various nation boycotts and threats thereof (including from the U.S.), it also featured a 100,000-seat stadium that was constructed to one-up the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum used in 1932. The 1936 Berlin Games also were the first modern games with an Olympic Torch relay (to showcase the nation and the Aryan people), the first modern cinematographer (Leni Riefenstahl) chronicled the Games for propaganda purposes, and the famed Hindenburg zeppelin was seen overhead regularly after being initially launched in the spring of 1936.
From left, the Hindenburg was spotted over the massive stadium frequently and the torch relay provided plenty of opportunities to promote the Nazi Party.
In short, being present to see Owens’ performance, soak up the historical significance of the moments, and get a feel for what it was like in the stadium (and maybe even enjoy wurst or two along with a pint).
South African middle- and long-distance runner Zola Budd was a bit of an anomaly. While most runners during her era preferred the modern comforts and peformance improvment afforded in running shoes, she opted to maintain the barefoot, or natural, approach.
It worked for her. As a 17-year-old in 1984 she established an unrecognized 5000 meter record at an event in South Africa, running it in 15:01.83. It was unrecognized because South Africa was excluded from international competitions because of its segregation policies. She eventually became a naturalized citizen of Great Britain and ran for that nation at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles where she became a household name for her interaction on the track with American runner Mary Decker during the 3000 meter finals. The result was a fall for Decker and a disappointing seventh place finish for Budd.
South African middle distance and distance runner, Zola Budd, competed for much of her career barefoot.
As we were researching Budd – who now goes by Zola Pieterse – we found this wonderful recollection from photographer David Burnett who was in the Los Angeles Coliseum that day in 1984 and captured some of the most iconic images of the collision and its aftermath. Read Burnett’s remembrance here.
Budd went on to run in the 1992 Summer Games in Barcelona, now representing her native South Africa, but did not qualify for the finals. Decker competed in the 1500 and 3000 meters in the 1988 Games in Seoul finishing eighth and 10th.
The image of Mary Decker shortly after the entanglement between her and Zola Budd in 1984. (Photo by David Burnett/Contact Press Images)
Just to review, The Fan Teaser comes courtesy of longtime buddy, Pat Schutte. The cropped photo below and the accompanying clue give you an idea as to who or what the image is of. We invite you to use the Comment option to take a crack at solving the Teaser and, if you’re so inclined, participate in some good-spirited banter with your fellow sports fans. The Fan Teaser will appear each Friday morning with the reveal coming to you by the early kickoff on Sunday.
