2022 RunBlogRun Spring Middle Distance Daily Track Training (800m-5000m), Week 15, Day 6

When I was in high school, San Jose City College was the place to see the stars. I would run by there on our morning runs and evening runs. One morning we saw this huge athlete throwing the discus. In the evening, we watched him throwing the javelin. I remember going up to ask him which event he did. The guy was very nice, smiled, and told me that he was a decathlete. I had seen stories about decathletes on Bud Greenspan’s Olympiad shows but never met one. I remember thinking, this guy is an Olympian (and he was, having placed 12th in 1972).

That summer, he won the 1976 Olympic games decathlon. I would spend some time with Bruce Jenner (now Caitlyn Jenner) in the 1990s and found him to be always a nice person. At the time, the living decathlon gold medalists were helping young American decathletes appreciate the level of competition at global events.

Elizabeth Leachman and Tamrat Gavenas Capture First-Place Titles at the 45th Foot Locker Cross Country Championships National Finals Presented by HOKA®

Olympic Champions Noah Lyles, Julien Alfred and Grant Holloway to headline New Balance Indoor Grand Prix on Feb. 2

Coffee with Larry, December 12, 2024, this is FootLocker XC Championships week, presented by HOKA

When Bruce Jenner transitioned to Caitlyn Jenner, some of the first people to wish him the best was his former competitors and coaches. I hope someday to be able to tell her how much she meant to me. I recall Daley Thompson, Olympic gold in 1980 and 1984, at an interview, speaking kindly about how Caitlyn Jenner had supported Daley prior to the 1984 LA Olympics.

That is the way it should be.