The 100m has been considered an extremely exciting spectacle for decades. In the 21st century, the competition has been dominated by Jamaicans, most notably Usain Bolt, the current world record holder. However, before he ran 9.58 seconds in Berlin, the famous 10-second barrier in 1968 was overcome by a deceased American.
Regardless of the rank of the competition, the bouts of sprinters and women runners attract a lot of attention. The action is extremely fast. Fans can wait hours for matches that last ten seconds. The great exploits of Usain Bolt only increased the popularity of the 100m. The basis of the records was laid, in particular, by the first runner to run this distance in less than 10 seconds.
Jim Hynes is dead
World Athletics has announced that Jim Hines has passed away at the age of 76. The American entered the history of sports as the first person to officially run a distance of 100 meters under the magical 10-second limit. At the 1968 US Championships in Sacramento, he clocked 9.9 manually and 10.03 electronically. Prior to 1977, no electronic measurements were required to confirm the record.
In the same year, during the Olympic Games in Mexico, he again ran the distance in 9.9 seconds (manually measured), but the electronic measurement showed 9.95. Thanks to this, he will go down in the history of athletics as the first person to overcome a large barrier. His record stood for 15 years. Calvin Smith clocked 9.93 seconds in 1983.
Hines, in addition to an individual gold in the 100 meters at the Mexico Games, won the most precious metal medal in the relay at the same event. In this run, he also set a world record as the entire team ran the 4 x 100 m in 38.24 seconds.
Later career of Jim Hines
Hines, who became addicted to baseball as a child, shortly after the Mexico Olympics ended with athletics. He focused on American football, signing with the Miami Dolphins (NFL). He didn’t make a big career in two years. After retiring from professional sports, he focused on youth work in Houston.
Source: Wprost
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