Track and Field's G.O.A.T.: Usain Bolt, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, and More
ON YOUR MARKS Track and field is one of the world’s oldest sports The Olympic Games started in Greece in 776 BCE Men competed in events such as races discus throw and long jump But women weren’t allowed to participate Women were finally able to compete in Olympic track and field in 1928 The Games have continued to evolve over time The site of the Olympic Games in Greece 4
WILMA RUDOLPH won three gold medals at the 1960 Olympics PAAVO NURMI’S world record for the 10,000-meter race stood for almost 13 years JACKIE JOYNER-KERSEE holds the top six scores in the heptathlon CARL LEWIS won four straight gold medals in the long jump Choosing the greatest of all time G.O.A.T. is a tough task A lot has changed in track and field over the years Modern gear such as shoes and clothes is much lighter than gear used to be The World Athletics Championships happen every two years instead of every four Performance-enhancing substances such as steroids have been banned FACTS AT A GLANCE 5 5
Fortunately superstars have some things in common They set world records They won Olympic gold medals Their names are in the Hall of Fame And most of them excelled at events both on the track and in the field You may not know all the names in this book You might feel that someone A runner leaps over a hurdle 6 6
important such as Allyson Felix Michael Johnson or Florence Griffith Joyner has been left out Your friends will think their G.O.A.T. list is the best That’s okay disagreeing is part of the fun Talking about the world’s top track-and-field athletes is what this book is all about The pole bends as it lifts an athlete in the pole vault event 7
