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Sporting Witness: Bob Beamon and the 'Leap of the Century'

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Bob Beamon and the "Leap of the Century"

14/07/2012 GMT

Bob Beamon and the 'Leap of the Century'

BBC World Service - Sporting Witness, Bob Beamon and the 'Leap of the Century'

The American long-jumper on shattering the world record at the 1968 Mexico Olympics

How the American long-jumper shattered the world record at the 1968 Mexico Olympics.

In 1968, the American athlete Bob Beamon, made a jump that many thought would never be bettered.

"As I struck that lightboard, I went up over six feet... and then I'd landed at this distance that was described as a freak."

In a single leap at the Mexico City Olympics, he improved the world record by more than half a metre. His new world record for long jump was 8.90m.

Sporting Witness speaks to Bob Beamon and to Lynn Davies, a Welsh long-jumper who saw the feat.

This programme was first broadcast in July 2012.

Picture: Bob Beamon's long jump at the Mexico City Olympics in 1968, Credit: Douglas Miller/Keystone/Getty Images

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