Long jumper Bob Beamon has been associated with the Special Olympics movement since 1968. The Olympic champion and former world record holder is also not going to miss the current World Games in Berlin.
Wherever Bob Beamon appears, great sporting history is just around the corner. In 1968, the American became Olympic champion in the long jump in Mexico City with a sensational distance of 8.90 meters. To this day, Mike Powell (8.95 meters, 1991 at the World Championships in Tokyo) is the only other person who has jumped further than Beamon in competitions in regular wind conditions.
Associated with the movement for 55 years
What is mentioned much less often in relation to him – the now 76-year-old has always been a close companion of the Special Olympics and was present at the very first Special World Games in Chicago in 1968. “These in Berlin are really not my first Special Olympics,” he says with a laugh.
At the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, Bob Beamon made a leap for eternity. In the same year he attended the first Special World Games in Chicago.
“A family member of mine competed in the Special Olympics in 1968 and won a gold medal. I then won one at the Olympics. It was a beautiful thing for my family.” It was also around this time that he met Eunice Kennedy-Shriver, the founder of the Special Olympics. She was a sister of US President John F. Kennedy, who was assassinated in Dallas in 1963. “A lot has been achieved. But we still have a lot of work ahead of us,” emphasizes Beamon, now 55 years after the premiere in Berlin.
In Berlin, Beamon took part in the Unified Experience relay race. Seven teams fought against each other in the 4×100 meter race, including athletes from the World Games and volunteers from popular sports, as well as aces from the Paralympics such as Mathias Mester, silver medalist in shot put at the 2008 Paralympics, or Maike Schwarz, who won silver at the 2016 Paralympics in Rio won the 50m freestyle
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“Special Olympics need their own space and time”
Benita Fitzgerald Mosley is also there. In 1984 she became Olympic champion in the 100 meter hurdles in Los Angeles. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of Special Olympics International. In the context of world sport, the 61-year-old will continue to value the independence of the movement in the future. “The Special Olympics competitions need their own space and time, otherwise people wouldn’t pay much attention to it,” she says.
In addition, the thought of being together is more important than the competition placement. “I think the most important thing is that you reach your own peak. You may only finish last in athletics, but if you run faster than ever before, that’s a win,” she said.
Being there is everything – for Bob Beamon too
The best example of this was provided by Bob Beamon at the Unified Experience relay race. “It’s my first 100-meter run in over 50 years. After all, I was also a long jumper,” he said before the start. In the end, even though his team finished last, Beamon proudly displayed his competitor’s ribbon amidst all the other athletes.
The schedule of the Special Olympic World Games in Berlin at a glance.