Three Olympics, Three Events

[DoubleRBar]

Happy 72nd birthday today (Monday) to an Olympic champion who competed in three Olympic Games and in three different events.

Our birthday athlete set an Olympic record in winning the gold medal in the third of those three Olympics.

This athlete did not compete in the hurdles during those three Games.

You might be interested to know that this person was 25 years old when competing in the first of those three Olympics.

Another Olympic champion, with the same initials as our birthday athlete, won gold medals at the same Olympics where our birthday athlete won Olympic gold.

Name our birthday athlete for this penultimate Monday in February.

[Trickstat]

Carlos Lopes - who won gold in the 1984 marathon at the age of 37? The clue gave the first Olympics as 1972 and no champions from Moscow 1980 seemed to fit (I think Pietro Mennea was too young).

Of course, Carl Lewis shares his initials and had quite a good Games in 1984!

[DoubleRBar]

Happy birthday today to Carlos Lopes (72). Very well done, Trickstat. Lopes, as you know, ran the 5,000 and the 10,000 in Munich (1972). He took the Olympic silver medal in the 10,000 at the 1976 Montreal Games and won the marathon in Los Angeles. He ran 2:09:21 to set a new Olympic record in a race some thought would be won by Rob de Castella of Australia. Rob de Castella was fifth in 2:11:09. Yes, Lopes was 37 when he won in Los Angeles. He was the oldest man to win the Olympic marathon and he won by 35 seconds.