IMHO, this is the most iconic Olympic podium photo of all time. Mexico City, 1968. I saw this happen live. And Tommie Smith and John Carlos did not come home as heroes; they came home as pariahs, at least to most white people.
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Yeah, Peter Norman. Carlos and Smith told him what they were going to do and he was like, "I'm in." When Carlos left his gloves behind, it was Norman's idea for them to split them. Baller move. The Australian parliament apologized for his later treatment 6 years after he died.
The Aussie who came second is an absolute legend. Beforehand the two yanks explained what it was about, he was all “yeah no worries all good go for it” and wore their badge supporting black rights.
You can see it on his left chest.
He copped shit for it but was unrepentant.
Mate, 'soccer' is not an Americanism. It's from England, but due to the vagaries of when various sports propagated the names fell out the way they did.
He also *asked* if it would be appropriate for him to join them in raising a fist, and when told no, he *offered* his gloves as a way he could support their message.
Our king only just lost the national 200m record (only beaten this year). He was running even better before the next Olympics and didn’t get selected.
Didn’t even get invited to the Sydney Olympics.
Peter Norman (the white silver medalist) also wore a human rights badge on the podium. He got into a lot of trouble in Australia for his support of Smith and Carlos.
When Norman died in 2006, Smith and Carlos were pallbearers at his funeral.
I was born and raised in Mexico, and the 68 Olympics were awesome for a 12 year old. While I agree that this is probably the most iconic Olympic moment, there were also some other huge sports moments: Bob Beamons jump, the Fosbury Flop (I was in the stadium), Mexico winning 9 medals (3 golds)
Yeah, I heard it live, too. I was a college sophomore; it was finals week. I had the radio on after going to bed depressed when McCarthy lost California, and...
My mom was asleep by then. I told her the next morning after we both got up.
So did the Australian athlete, Peter Norman for his show of support, wearing a pin for the Olympic Movement for Human Rights.
All three of them suffered for years afterward, but Norman always maintained that Tommie Smith and John Carlos suffered far more than he ever could have done.
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You can see it on his left chest.
He copped shit for it but was unrepentant.
Fucking Aussie legend.
BTW - football, yanks, you kick the ball with your feet, hence term football. you can call yours throwball or hand/arm ball!😜😉😘
Here, a reference:
https://www.britannica.com/story/why-do-some-people-call-football-soccer
Didn’t even get invited to the Sydney Olympics.
Peter Norman (the white silver medalist) also wore a human rights badge on the podium. He got into a lot of trouble in Australia for his support of Smith and Carlos.
When Norman died in 2006, Smith and Carlos were pallbearers at his funeral.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Norman#:~:text=Various%20commentary%20has%20claimed%20that,Black%20Power%20salute's%20forgotten%20man.
I was 25.
MLK and RFK had been killed earlier that year.
I was camping in our side yard, listening to the radio, and heard RFK coverage live, as they broke in on whatever had been on.
WALSTIB
My mom was asleep by then. I told her the next morning after we both got up.
All three of them suffered for years afterward, but Norman always maintained that Tommie Smith and John Carlos suffered far more than he ever could have done.
They were both pallbearers at his funeral in 2006.