The Bishop and the Butterfly: Murder, Politics, and the End of the Jazz Age
    oldenGoldenDecoy's picture

    In memory of a fellow Track and Field competitor

     

    From back in the days ...

    Here I am in the Triple Jump in the late '60s when we were young and could fly.
    My personal best was 15.92m (52-11 3/4) set in Poitiers, France in 1969.

    But this is about...

    Adiós a Pedro Pérez Dueñas (1952-2018)

    Wednesday 18 July 2018 | 10:08:08 PM

    juventudrebelde.cu/cuba/2018-07-18/adios-a-pedro-perez-duenas

    The first world record holder in Cuba, Pedro Pérez Dueñas from Pinar del Río, died Wednesday in Havana at the age of 66, according to the digital newspaper Jit.

    His triple jump of 17,40 meters during the 1971 Pan American Games in Cali not only elevated him to the top of the podium in that contest but also assured him a lifetime position in the history of revolutionary sport.

    Central American champion in Panama 1970 and four years later in Santo Domingo and multiple national record holder, Pérez Dueñas, when he died, worked as a specialist in Sports Medicine in the National Institute of Sports, Physical Education and Recreation (Inder) of Cuba, and also offered his knowledge and experiences to the Cuban Athletics Federation.

    He received the Order of Olympic Merit and deserved by his sporting career to be a member of the Athletics Hall of Fame of Central America and the Caribbean.

    We extend our sincere condolences to your family and friends.


    Pedro's #TripleJump yearly progression (age)

    1969 (17) 15.78
    1970 (18) 16.38
    1971 (19) 17.40 World Record
    1972 (20) 16.82
    1973 (21) 15.97
    1974 (22) 16.83
    1975 -
    1976 (24) 16.81
    1977 ?
    1978 (26) 16.35

     

    And my mantra today?

    I'll be seeing you again Pedro... but just...

    Comments

    Condolences on the loss of your fellow competitor (were you two in touch over the years as friends also?).  Very cool pics.  I was a latecomer to running, messing around with it with the University of Chicago Track Club as a much valued respite from my grad studies.  I was in my mid 20s and it was a big freaking deal for me when I was, by all of .24 seconds, able to run a sub 5 minute mile.  My UCTC teammates, one in his early 40s and the other in his mid 30s, and both with mile PRs at least 15 seconds faster than mine, were razzing me about it after:  "New York Times headline: (my name) breaks 5 minute mile!"  You, by contrast, clearly were really good at your event! 


    Fascinating! 

    Wonderful!

    I, of course have no claims to athletic prowess. ha

    But I did jog for thirteen years.

    I participated in two 26 mile ordeals.

    But damn!

    I mean I know that one must train and then train and then train again in order to reach some pinnacle

    I am elated that you recognized this hero.

     


    Damn, Dick.  It took you thirteen years to jog 52 miles?  Or were those "ordeals" just in-between events as you just kept jogging your little Forrest Gump heart out?  Either way, I'm impressed.  ;-)


    Missy, I think you are making fun of me.

    I aint sayin you are makin fun of me.

    But....

    hahahahhhah

    (By the by, I kept diaries and it was about 33,000 miles, DAMNIT)

    HHAHAH

     


    Thanks, OGD.  Well done.


    To all here...

    Thank you so much for taking the time to read my post.

    To AmericanDreamer. Running and workouts do become an obsession. In high school I also ran cross-country. We ran a 1.85 mile hilly course and my personal best which still stands as our school record was 8.51. I never ran the mile. I couldn't stand running circles. cheeky  But running was exhilarating in weird way.

    You may wish to take a read of this:

    berkeleywellness.com/fitness/exercise/article/chasing-runners-high

    As to Dick's point...

    I mean I know that one must train and then train and then train again...

    How right you are Dick. You may wish to saunter over to my open/public Face Book post for the background over the years. (1964-1987)

    https://tinyurl.com/TripleJump-SandBox-FaceBook

    Thanks again folks for checking in...

    ....


    OGD, thank you.  And thank you for your service to our country.  Seriously.  I know that's become a somewhat fraught (perhaps overused and somewhat trivialized, even, to some?) saying in recent years, taking on additional meanings.  But I mean it the way I think it used to be meant, and still sometimes is.