This Day in Track & Field, January 16, Paavo Nurmi breaks fourth WR on tour (1925), this time in Chicago! by Walt Murphy

Walt Murphy’s News and Results Service  ([email protected])

This Day in Track & Field—January 16

1925–Showing no signs of fatigue after his long train ride from New York, the amazing Paavo Nurmi lowered his day-old World Record for 1-3/4 miles to 7:55.4 at the Illinois A.C. Handicap meet at the Chicago Coliseum. Finishing a distant 2nd was Joie Ray, whose records at 1-1/4 and 1-1/2 miles survived Nurmi’s attack in this race.  Nurmi might have gotten those additional records,  but meet officials had changed the configuration of the track from 10-laps to the mile to 12-laps. Nurmi had planned his splits based on the original proposed layout and was so upset after the race that he threatened to cut short his U.S. your. Thankfully, he had a change of heart.

            After spending only three hours in the Windy City, Nurmi hopped back on a train for another grueling trip back to NY City to run again the following night. (From the NY Times Archives)

1937—Leslie MacMitchell (George Washington H.S.,NY) ran 4:28.6 at the Stuyvesant Games at NY’s Armory to set a National U.S. High School Indoor Record in the Mile.

He would become one of the best milers in the U.S. while attending NYU, winning IC4A (1940-1942), NCAA (1941), and U.S. (1941/1500m) titles. He also won the Wanamaker Mile at the 1942 Millrose Games and equalled the World Indoor Record of 4:07.4 in 1941.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leslie_MacMitchell

1954—Tom Murphy (my cousin-WM), a senior at St.Augustine (Brooklyn,NY), ran 1:14.1 at the Cardinal Hayes Games to set a National flat-floor H.S. Record for 600-yards. He would lower the record to 1:14.0 two weeks later at the NYU Interscholastic meet. (Both at NY’s Armory)

Murphy continued to compete at the Armory during his collegiate career at Manhattan College and for two years as a member of the NYAC. He won the 800-meters at the 1960 U.S. Olympic Trials (semi-finalist in Rome) and was a member of a U.S. team that set a World Record in the 2-mile relay in 1960.

The entire Murphy clan became track fans because of Tom’s success and he’s the reason I’ve been involved in the sport ever since! (Tom passed away in 2025 at the age of 89)

1965–Ron Clarke got the first of his four outdoor World Records at 5000-meters, running 13:34.8 in Hobart, Australia, to break the 7+-year old mark of 13:35.0 that was set by the Soviet Union’s Vladimir Kuts in 1957.

WR Progression: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/5000_metres

Beginning of an Era: https://www.worldathletics.org/news/feature/running-world-records-clarke-keino-jazy-1965

1977— Two U.S. High School Indoor Records were set at the St.Francis Prep Games at NY’s Armory.

Lincoln H.S. (Jersey City,NJ), with a lineup of Linda Pickering, Judy Davis, Cheryl Morrison, and Ruth Ford), ran 1:49.0 in the 880-yard relay, and Muriel Piluso (North Rockland-Thiells,NY) and Kim Coakley (Christ the King-Queens,NY) both ran 11.4 in the 100-yard dash.

1982–Carl Lewis became the first man to break the 28’ barrier in the Long Jump indoors when he reached out to a mark of 28-1 (8.56) at the Vitalis/Olympic Inv. (Lewis held the previous World Record of 27-10  ¼ (8.49).

The meet, which had been held at NY’s Madison Square Garden, returned after a year’s hiatus and was held at the new facility at the Brendan Byrne Arena in the Meadowlands Complex in New Jersey.

Another record was supplied by Billy Olson, whose winning  height of18-6 ½ (5.65) in the Pole Vault bettered Dan Ripley’s previous American mark of 18-5  ¾ (5.63).

Running on the brand new, 10-laps to the mile banked track, Alberto Salazar, despite falling on the 2nd lap, ran away from Suleiman Nyambui to win the 5000-meters, 13:23.08-13:32.23. Salazar just missed his AR of 13:22.6, which was set while finishing 2nd to Nyambui’s World Record of 13:20.4 at the 1981 Millrose Games.

https://www.nytimes.com/1982/01/17/sports/salazar-winner-28-footer-by-lewis.html?searchResultPosition=1

1983–19-year old Jerome Carter had created a bit of a stir when he high-jumped a personal best of 7-4 (2.235?) at the Towson Relays on January 2, but he really got the sport’s attention when he cleared 7-7 (2.31) on this day at George Mason University.

It was cold inside the Mason field house, so Carter was wearing two sweatsuits to keep warm. He kept them on as he missed his first attempt at  6-8. Angry at himself for missing such an “easy” height, he walked over to coach Alan Dean and said, “That’s it. Don’t worry about it, the World Record is going to come down tonight”! Brave talk for someone who had never cleared 7-feet before the season began, but Carter would soon show that he wasn’t making an idle boast.

            The 6-1 (1.855?), 160, Carter passed 6-10 (2.085?), then cleared 7-0 (2.135?) and 7-2 (2.185?) on his first jumps while still wearing the two sets of sweats! He got serious at 7-4 (2.235?), taking off two tops and one pair of pants and cleared  the bar easily to match his PB. With the bar now at 7-7, Carter deigned to take off the second pair of pants and again cleared easily on his first attempt. Observers said at the time that Carter had at least two inches to spare when he went over the bar. “Then”, Dean said, “we decided, ‘What the heck, let’s go for the record’.” Carter had to wait around for 1/2-hour while officials searched for a steel tape to ensure a proper measurement. One was found and the bar was set at 7-8 ¾ (2.36), 1/4-inch higher than Vladimir Yashchenko’s World Record.

            Carter had been jumping with great confidence up to this point, but with the bar actually set at a world record height, he admittedly tensed up and did not have a good effort in his three attempts. “He forgot to do the things he was doing at the lower heights”, said Dean. “He knows he should have had it”. The news of Carter’s big clearance spread quickly over the track and field grapevine, and within a few days it seemed that every meet director in the country wanted him to compete in their meet.

            Carter went on to have an excellent career, but he would never improve on his 7-7 indoor best. However, he did clear 7-9 ¼ (2.37)  during the 1988 outdoor season, made the U.S. top-10 rankings every year from 1983-1990 (reaching a high of #2 in 1987, when he was ranked #10 in the world), and was a member of the 1987 U.S. World Championships team.

            Carter’s rise to world-class level was a swift one, but it was preceded by some hard times. As a junior at Harford Vocational H.S. in Maryland (coached by Dean), Carter cleared 6-8 (2.03) to win the 1980 Maryland Class “C” state title. He improved to 6-10 (2.085?) in the spring of 1981, but then broke his right ankle. He was out of action for five weeks, then returned to competition in the summer with a 6-11 (2.11) win at the East Coast Inv.

            The broken ankle had apparently scared off local colleges, so Dean called Art Morgan, then the head coach at New Mexico State, who said he’d love to have Carter on his team. In Carter’s first semester at NMS, and even before Morgan had a chance to see his star recruit jump, he felt some pain in his ankle while playing basketball. Doctors determined that the earlier break had never properly healed. Surgery was required and Carter’s schoolwork suffered while he tried to work his way back to full strength. He returned to Maryland before the school year was over and eventually enrolled at Harford Community College, where Dean was now the head coach, in the fall of 1982.  (From Eastern Track)   

Sports Illustrated Vault: https://vault.si.com/vault/1983/02/21/the-quickest-takeoff-ever

1984–Carol Lewis topped her own American (21-7 ½ [6.59]) and Collegiate (21-6  1 [2/6.56]) Records in the Long Jump with her winning mark of 21-10  ¾ (6.67m) in Osaka, Japan. Brother Carl didn’t fare as well, finishing 2nd in the 60-meters to Australia’s Paul Narracott (6.62-6.69).

1987–Greg Foster topped a great field in the 60-meter hurdles at the Sunkist Inv. in Los Angeles, running 7.36 to beat Tonie Campbell (7.54), Renaldo Nehemiah (7.59), and Roger Kingdom (7.64). Track and Field News reported at the time that Foster and the rest of the field got away with a collective flyer, and thought for sure that Foster’s time wouldn’t be accepted as a World Record. But it was, and stood as the American Record (later equaled by Allen Johnson and Terrence Trammell) until Grant Holloway ran 7.35 in 2019! It was the first major indoor meet for Nehemiah since being reinstated as an amateur in 1986 after his brief career in the NFL with the San Francisco 49ers.

1987–Ken Lowery set a World and American Record of 1:00.17 for 500-meters in Indianapolis. Michael Franks (1:00.45) was also under the previous mark of 1:00.86, which was set the year before by Clarence Daniel.

1987–Competing in Simmerath, Germany, Carlo Thränhardt set a World Indoor Record of 7-10  ½ (2.40) in the High Jump.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlo_Thränhardt

https://www.worldathletics.org/athletes/germany/carlo-thranhardt-2896

WR Progression: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Men%27s_high_jump_indoor_world_record_progression

2010–Penn State freshman Casimir Loxsom set an American Junior Indoor  Record of 1:16.92 for 600-meters (since broken) on his home track.

http://therealtrain.blogspot.com/2015/01/cas-loxsom-and-600m-sweet-spot.html

2011—Former Duke star Sally Meyerhoff won the Rock ‘n’ Roll Arizona Marathon in 2:37:56. Sadly, she was killed less than two months later after being struck by a pickup truck while cycling as part of her cross-training.

Meyerhoff won 3 ECAC titles on the track while at Duke before turning her attention to road racing (2004-5000, 2005-3000i, 2007-5000i). She was 20^th at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials.

Kate Van Buskirk honored her former Duke teammate by getting a tattoo on her abdomen—“Be Relentlessly Positive”

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/17/sports/17meyerhoff.html

Remembering:

https://www.runnersworld.com/advanced/a20824608/in-memoriam-sally-meyerhoff/

2014—Cheered on by coach Alberto Salazar,  Galen Rupp ran 13:01.26 for 5000-meters at Boston University to smash Lopez Lomong’s American Record of 13:07.00. Sam Chelanga, who stayed with Rupp for most of the race, finished 2^nd in 13:04.35.

Mary Cain won the 1000-meters in 2:39.25 to break Diana Richburg’s 32-year old World and American Junior Record of 2:40.2. She would lower the mark to 2:35.80 the following month. Cain, a senior at Bronxville(NY) H.S., also bettered the National H.S. Record of 2:43.40, but had turned pro and was not eligible to set prep records.

FloTrack Video(5k-full race): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QG6RLh5hdb4

https://www.runnersworld.com/races-places/a20826769/galen-rupp-sets-u-s-indoor-5000-meter-record-of-13-01-26/

https://www.letsrun.com/news/2014/01/galen-rupp-breaks-american-indoor-5000-record-runs-1301-26-boston/

2016—Penn State senior Brannon Kidder set a Collegiate Record of 2:18.26 for 1000-meters on his home track. The previous mark of 2:18.55 was set by Boston University’s Rich Peters in 2014. Kidder went on to finish 7^th in the 800 at the NCAA Indoor Championships, and 4^th in the 1500 Outdoors. His record lasted until Texas senior Yusuf Bizimana ran 2:18:10 in 2024)

2016—Texas A&M freshman Donavan Brazier ran 1:45.93 on his home track in College Station, Texas, to set the American Junior/Under-20 Indoor Record for 800-meters. The  previous mark of 1:47.84 was set by Villanova’s John Marshall back in 1982.

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meuxK6LFLp0

2022—American Records were set in Houston by 37-year old Keira D’Amato, who won the Marathon in 2:19:12, and 38-year old Sara Hall, who ran 67:15 while finishing 2^nd to Kenya’s Vicoty Chepngeno (65:03) in the Half-Marathon. The previous ARs were held by Deena Kastor (2:19:36/2006) and Molly Huddle (67:25/2018).

https://trackandfieldnews.com/article/houston-marathon-american-record-for-keira-damato/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nv0m6jTFFQ0

D’Amato Reaction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__h1FsqydTs

https://abc13.com/2022-chevron-houston-marathon-womens-winner-keira-damato-mom/11476072/

https://www.runnersworld.com/women/a40221547/keira-damato-is-chasing-happiness/

Born on This Day*

Debbie Ferguson-McKenzie—Bahamas 50 (1976) One of the “Golden Girls” from the Bahamas.  Gold medalist in the

         4×100 at the 1999 World Championships and 2000 Olympics;

         2001 World Champion-200m (bronze-2009);  2004 Olympic bronze medalist—200m;

         5-time Olympian; 1998 NCAA Champion 100m&200m (Georgia);

         PBs:10.91 (2002), 22.19 (1999),

         Former coach at Kentucky and Houston—returned to the Bahamas after the 2025 season to become the coach at

             Red-Line Athletics, where she’s working with young athletes

         Wiki Bio: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debbie_Ferguson-McKenzie

         Stats:

         http://www.all-athletics.com/node/117044

         https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/64991

         2000 OG: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flmX8rOGlDw

Anthony Washington  60 (1966)  1999 World Champion—Discus (1993(10^th) ; PB:233-5 (71.14/#4 All-Time U.S.)

         All-American at Syracuse—NCAA-1987 (3^rd), 1989 (2^nd), 1990 (4^th)

         3-time Olympic finalist—1992 (12^th), 1996 (4^th), 2000 (12^th)

         Son Turner, also a discus thrower, won 4 NCAA titles (1-Discus, 3-Shot Put), and threw 227-10 (69.44) with the

             H.S. Discus in 2017 (#4 All-Time U.S. Preps).

         WC Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8uq2pJHRdF4

         https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/79168

         https://www.worldathletics.org/athletes/united-states/anthony-washington-14254295

         2000 Article: http://tinyurl.com/hshnx2u

Wolfgang Schmidt—Germany 72 (1954)  Competing for East Germany, he was the 1976 Olympic silver medalist—

             Discus (1980-4^th);

         Former World Record Holder (233-5 [71.16], 1978); spent 15 months in an East German prison (see Wiki link). Was

             allowed to move to West Germany in 1987, but the paperwork was delayed to make it impossible to represent

             his “new” country at the 1988 Olympics

         Ranked by T&F News among the top-10 in the world 12 times between 1975 and 1992 (#1 five times). And he

              wasn’t ranked at all from 1981-1987!)  https://trackandfieldnews.com/rankings/

         WR Video: https://vimeo.com/40663104

         From East to West:

         https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/69883

         https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolfgang_Schmidt

         Thrown Free-The Odyssey of Wolfgang Schmidt: https://www.ebay.com/p/1497834

Deceased

Eric Liddell-Great Britain  43 (1902-Feb.21, 1945)  1924 Olympic gold medalist—400m, subject of the Academy

            Award-winning movie Chariots of Fire

         “Stunning Olympic Moment”

         http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2012/jan/04/50-stunning-olympic-moments-eric-liddell

       Heroic Death:

         http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2013/12/heroic-death-chariots-fires-eric-liddell/

         http://www.biographyonline.net/sport/athletics/eric-liddell.html

         http://www.ericliddell.org/ericliddell/home

       Wiki Bio: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Liddell

         https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/69245

         https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYNUxdoIacA

       Documentary(1h,17m): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0F3NEVzK-Ik

       Chariots of Fire: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chariots_of_Fire

       Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odtqtlhsv4E

Sam Jones 74 (1880-April 13, 1954)  1904 Olympic gold medalist—High Jump

         3-time U.S. Champion (1901,1903,1904)

         2-time IC4A Champion (NYU/1900,1901)

         https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/18272