Tommie Smith

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Men's athletics
Olympic medal record
Gold	1968 Mexico City	200 metres

For others with a similar name, see Tommy Smith.

Tommie Smith (born June 6, 1944 in Clarksville, Texas) is an American former track & field athlete and professional football player. Smith was the winner of the 200-meter dash at the 1968 Summer Olympics.

1 Biography
2 Audio interview
- 2.1 Video interview
3 See also
4 External links

[edit] Biography

Tommie Smith (center) and John Carlos (right) showing the Black Power salute in the 1968 Summer Olympics while Silver medalist Peter Norman (left) wears an OPHR badge to show his support for the two Americans.

While a student at San Jose State, Smith won the national collegiate 220-yard (201.17-meter) title in 1967 before adding the AAU furlong (201.17m) crown as well. He repeated as AAU 200m champion in 1968 and made the Olympic team. In the 1968 Olympic Games at Mexico City, he won the gold medal for the 200m in a world record time 19.83 s. He and a teammate, John Carlos, who earned the bronze, gave a Black Power salute while receiving their medals. Silver medalist Peter Norman, a white Australian, donned a human rights badge on the podium in support of their protest. (See 1968 Olympics Black Power Salute.)

Some people (particularly IOC president Avery Brundage) felt that a political statement had no place in the international forum of the Olympic Games. In an immediate response to their actions, Smith and Carlos were suspended from the U.S. team by Brundage and banned from the Olympic Village. Those who opposed the protest said the actions disgraced all Americans. Supporters, on the other hand, praised the men for their bravery.

Even while attending Lemoore High School, Smith showed major potential, setting most of the school's track records, many of which remain. After graduating, Smith played professional football with the Cincinnati Bengals for three years. He later became a track coach at Oberlin College in Ohio, where he also taught sociology and until recently was a faculty member at Santa Monica College in Santa Monica, California.

During his career, Smith set seven individual world records and also was a member of several world-record relay teams at San Jose State. With all-time bests of 10.1 for 100 meters, 19.83 for 200 and 44.5 for the 400, Smith still ranks high on the all-time lists.

He became a member of the National Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1978. In 1996, Smith was inducted into the California Black Sports Hall of Fame, and in 1999 he received the Sportsman of the Millennium Award. In 2000 - 2001 the County of Los Angeles and the State of Texas presented Smith with Commendation, Recognition and Proclamation Awards.

In 2005, a statue showing Smith and Carlos on the medal stand was constructed by political artist Rigo 23 and dedicated on the campus of San Jose State University. [1]

With author David Steele, Smith wrote his autobiography, entitled Silent Gesture, published in February of 2007 by Temple University Press.