Many Strong Jumpers Bring Jumping Skills In Winning

[DoubleRBar]

Happy birthday today (Thursday) to four Olympic champions with a total age of 385 years.

Our birthday athletes competed in a total of ten Olympic Games and none of those ten were the same Games.

The two oldest athletes are no longer alive (one died at 36 and the other was 68), however the two youngest are 84 and 50 today.

I have to warn you that there is some question about the correct birthdays for our two older athletes, but I believe March 28 could very well be their correct birthdays.

Only one of these four athletes was born in North America.

You may already know that the oldest and the youngest competed and won Olympic gold in the same event some 88 years apart.

Remember the person turning 84 today? That athlete competed in three Olympic in the same event and won Olympic gold in the first two of those Games.

Athlete number two (the one who died at 68 years) competed in only one Olympics and that was held in the country in which this individual was born.

As I said before, I am not positive about athlete number one's exact birthday, however I believe this person died the day before turning 37.

Athlete number three (turns 84 today) is the only person in this group that did not win Olympic gold using a certain event in track & field.

Two of our four athletes today represented the same nation at the Olympic Games.

Can anyone out there name all four of our birthday athletes for this last Thursday in March? Please don't be shy and give it a try.

[dukehjsteve]

I'll go for Jozef Schmidt for the 84'er. I'll leave the other 3 to others.

[DoubleRBar]

Happy birthday today (Thursday) to Jozef Schmidt (Poland) who turns 84 this day in March. Schmidt, of course, won two Olympic gold medals in the triple jump and was seventh place in his third Olympic Games (1968). He is the only athlete in our birthday group of four that did not compete in a certain event at the Olympic Games.

Very well done, dukehjsteve. You know your Olympic track & field history.

By the way, what chances do you give Christian Taylor in winning his third Olympic gold in the triple jump next year? I know he has to make the U.S. Olympic team first.

[Pego]

I am pretty sure Ilke Wyludda was born on March 28th as that is also my BD . That would be 50, eh?

[DoubleRBar]

Happy birthday today (50) to Ilke Wyludda and very good, Pego. Happy birthday today to Pego as well! Wyludda, in case you forgot, won the 1996 Atlanta Olympic discus throw. She was ninth place in Barcelona (1992) and she was seventh place in Sydney (2000).

Now we have two of our four birthday athletes for this final Thursday of March. The older two athletes were born 138 years ago today and 113 years ago today. The older person actually won five Olympic gold medals while the other athlete won one Olympic gold medal.

[Pego]

Thank you, DoubleRBar.

[dukehjsteve]

I am NOT looking it up to confirm, but the name Martin Sheridan is sticking in my head now. That would be the oldest, methinks he was a sp/dt/'er, and the initials work.

[LopenUupunut]

I'll go with Jim Bausch for #2, based on his age and the discus clue and one athlete being born in North America.

[DoubleRBar]

Very nice work, dukehjsteve and LopenUupunut. You got Martin Sheridan and Jim Bausch. Sheridan competed in the 1904, 1906 (I know it's a real Olympics), and 1908 Olympics in the discus throw. He won gold in 1904, 1906 (shot put & discus), and again in 1908 (discus and Greek style discus).

Sheridan was born in Ireland, but competed for the United States. He was one of the youngest Olympic gold medalists in track and field to die at the age of 36.

Jim Bausch won the decathlon in Los Angeles (1932) and died in 1974 at the age of 68.

Thank you and congratulations to dukehjsteve (two correct answers), Pego (the birthday man today), and LopenUupunut (excellent game player).

[bambam1729]

And here is Martin Sheridan in all his glory a few years ago - the Chocolate Lab - Martin Sheridan Mallon, aka Marty

[LopenUupunut]

Sheridan was born in Ireland, but competed for the United States. He was one of the youngest Olympic gold medalists in track and field to die at the age of 36.

Who was the youngest T&F Olympic gold medalist to die?

(I actually don't know the answer to this one off the top of my head. I probably did know it once, but I've forgotten.)

[bambam1729]

Marty is now 12 and sadly, his best days are behind him.

[bambam1729]

Well, I did look it up - but its George Saling - 1932 high hurdle gold medalist, who died less than a year after the Los Angeles Olympics, killed in a car accident on 15 April 1933, at age 23 years, and not quite 7 months

[DoubleRBar]

His name lives on with four legs (Martin Sheridan).