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kishan gill
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 Posted: Fri Jan 24, 2003 2:22 pm Post subject: calvin smith |
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It was interesting to read justin clouders tribute to the sprinter calvin smith.
I was 13 years old when by sheer chance i turned the tv on on a saturday morning in england in 1982. The progamme being telecast was the usa vs gdr track match in karl marx stadt in 1982. Up until this time my interest in track had been growing steadily since 1980 and watching coe and ovett and the buildup to the olympics climaxing with their clash.
On this particular day i became acquainted to the magnificent sprint world of a new talented american calvin smith. His phenemonal destruction of the field seemed so artistic and effortless and his unique running style was such a pleasure to watch that i became hooked to sprinting and calvin smith that i followed his career very closely until the early nineties when his career came to an end. When calvin hung up his spikes a part of me died too. future sprint races seemed less colourful and although i still watch athletics today the passion is not as strong.
I was lucky that track is a popular sport in the uk after soccer,rugby and cricket and is regularly televised that i had the chance to watch this great unsung sprinter who had the misfortune of belonging to the same era that gave us the legendary carl lewis.
As justin clouder pointed out, calvin was also a gentleman on and off the track as many of his contemporaries would attest. Although i always reject the culture of idolizing famous people, i could not help but write to calvin 10 years ago as well as his alabama coach wayne williams who were both kind enough to reply to my letters. I believed that i owed calvin smith my gratitude for providing me with such awe-inspiring sprinting over the years and the enjoyment it gave me.
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Dan
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Joined: 22 Mar 1999
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Location: Salem, OR
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| Posted: Fri Jan 24, 2003 2:50 pm Post subject: |
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Justin is a forum frequenter and I'm sure he'll enjoy reading your account. 
Dan
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Paul
Olympic Medalist
Joined: 28 Apr 2002
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Location: Oregon
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| Posted: Fri Jan 24, 2003 7:31 pm Post subject: |
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Very inspiring tribute. And considering what is going on in the world of Sprinting, today, very refreshing!! Thanks
Paul
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Conway
Olympic Medalist
Joined: 25 Aug 2001
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Location: Northen California
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| Posted: Sat Jan 25, 2003 3:15 pm Post subject: |
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I have to say that Calvin is one of my all time favorites ... I was fortunate enough to see him many many times ... Among my favortie Calvin moments was watching him win a sprint double at the Golden West INvitational his senior year ... It happened to occur during the same meet where Mike Carter threw the shot put 83 feet !!! But my all time favorite was in 1984 at a Pre Olympic meet in Sacramento ... Calvin ran a windy 9.94 on (at that time)) a dirt track on a cold, windy evening where the temerature was in the 40's !!! Second place in that competition was somewhere in the 10.20s ... This against a world class field !!! Calvin always gave 100% and I think most people lforget that he was a two time World Champion over 200 meters ... Calvin was definitely one of the sports best ever !!!
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Dan
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| Posted: Sat Jan 25, 2003 7:44 pm Post subject: |
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Ooh, that Golden West sounds like a memorable meet.  Was that Sacramento race by any chance on the infamous track that you've told us so much about? You don't see too many 0.3 margins of victory in the 100m...
Dan
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Conway
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Location: Northen California
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| Posted: Sun Jan 26, 2003 7:53 am Post subject: |
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I've been to every Golden West since 1972 and 1979 was definitely one of the greatest ever ... And yes that was the infamous track at Hughes Stadium ... From 40 meters out to the finish that was one of the most memorable bursts of speed I hiave ever seen ... I was as if he were suddenly in a different race from everyone else ...
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X King
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Joined: 11 Jan 2003
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Location: Great Britain
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| Posted: Sun Jan 26, 2003 11:38 am Post subject: |
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Yeah Calvin Smith was great!!I obviously don't remember him because I am only 13 Years Old,but I have seen both his 9.93s WR race at Colorado Springs in 1983,his Windy(+2.2 or +2.3m/s) 9.91s in Germany,and both of his great Third Leg runs of WR setting 4x1 Relays of 37.86s in 1983 WCh and 37.83s in 1984 LA OG!!
I remeber his 9.93s WR,Calvin had a great start,estimation of around 0.11-0.14s,good acceleration and Great Top End Speed (as usual)
And who could forget those memorable 200m World Titles,2 in a row,which is a record.No one has ever acheived that during a World Championships!!! And Conway,you forgot to mention that he was the first ever person to record a Sub-10/Sub-20 one-day double!!
X King
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Conway
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| Posted: Sun Jan 26, 2003 12:49 pm Post subject: |
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Oh I wasn't trying to mention all of his accomplishments, but you are right he did run a single day double of 9.97/19.99 at Zurich ... An awesome achievemnt which grows more so year by year ... Track and field was very big here in the states during most of his career, so I was fortunate to see him a lot live and in person ...
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