Bob Beamon did have a jump where everything came together. Beamon won the event with a world-record-breaking long jump of 8.9 meters. I remember just thinking, gosh, that was pretty cool to see a guy jump so far. “Bob Beamon’s job always gives me that bit of motivation to think, when you catch one it’ll be really big. I was struck by Mr. Beamon's athleticism at the age of ten. I remember watching Bob Beamon jump. Powell had not only jumped 4 cm further than Lewis, he had eclipsed the 23-year-old mark set by Bob Beamon and done so … Robert Beamon (born August 29, 1946) is an American former track and field athlete, best known for his world record in the long jump at the Mexico City Olympics in 1968.He broke the existing record by a margin of 55 cm ( 21 2 ⁄ 3 in.) The men's long jump was one of four men's jumping events on the Athletics at the 1968 Summer Olympics program in Mexico City. that was ineligible for the record books due to excessive wind assistance. After setting the record, Beamon competed irregularly and retired before the 1972 Olympics. Students may decide to investigate the question of “How good was Beamon?” by predicting the year in which his record jump of 8.90 metres should have been expected. It was a giant leap for man. Beamon didn't just set a record; he shattered one. So, why then did Beamon travel so far?

His first round effort that day shattered the previous world record by a staggering 55 centimetres as it smashed through both the imperial 28 … He came close to missing the Olympic final, overstepping o… Beamon entered the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico Cityas the favorite to win the gold medal, having won 22 of the 23 meets he had competed in that year, including a career best of 8.33 m (equivalent to 27 feet 4 inches) and a world's best of 8.39 m (27 ft. ​6 ⁄2 in.) When teammate Ralph Boston informed him that the jump was more than 29 feet, Beamon collapsed to the ground, overcome with such powerful emotions that he had to fight off nausea as well as tears and had to be helped to his feet by teammates. He was competing in the long jump in Mexico City. Bob Beamon’s 1968 gold medal win still does not make sense. U.S. athlete Bob Beamon competes in the men's long jump event during the Mexico Olympic Games on Oct. 19, 1968. He almost didn’t qualify for the event after committing fouls during his jumps and he didn’t even have a coach in the build-up. He had leaped where no one had gone before. The primary reason is that he hit the launch board while running rapidly.

24. A leap into the 21st century. Bob Beamon’s Long Jump. Five months before the 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics, Berlin, Germany (15 – 23 August 2009) the host nation has suddenly found a new athletics star. The scatter plot clearly shows that Beamon's (and Powell's) performance was substantially better than the trend established in previous years.

Tall, lean, handsome and donned in the American team colours of black and white; he gradually rocked himself into motion, exploding down the track in elongated strides, finding optimal velocity and easing slightly into the take-off board. When he jumped 8.90 in Mexico City, he did so at 7,350 feet of altitude (which allowed … Bob Beamon astonished the world when he leaped 29 feet, 2 and 1/2 inches, nearly two feet more than the existing long jump record, to capture … Bob Beamon (copy) I also remember Bob Beamon putting his hands to his face, and weeping.

Forty-four years on, the grainy mental image endures. Bob Beamon was the embodiment of athleticism as he stood motionless at the end of the runway, meditating on his opening jump in the Olympic final. I knew what the long jump was, as we had done it in PE in fourth and fifth grade. Bob Beamon won in a new world record of 8.90 m (29 ft 2 3 ⁄ 8 in); a record which stood for 23 years until it was finally broken in 1991, when Mike Powell jumped 8.95 m (29 ft 4 3 ⁄ 8 in) at the World Championships in Tokyo.