Tommie SMITH

At the age of 23, he began to make his mark in college competitions, winning the AAU 220-yard dash and the 200-meter dash at the Tokyo University Games.

After qualifying for the Olympic team, at the Mexico City Games “The Jet” won the gold medal and set a world record, becoming the first man to dip under 20 seconds in the 200 meters (19’’83). At the award ceremony, he went down in history for his sensational gesture of protest against racial discrimination, climbing onto the podium barefoot and raising his gloved fist, together with his colleague John Carlos.

After his protest, which cost him expulsion from the Olympic village and suspension from the US team, “The Jet” left athletics and switched to American football, playing for three seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals.

He was inducted into the Hall of Fame of US Track and Field, while in 2019 he joined the Hall of Fame of American Sports. In 2008 he won the Fair Play Menarini International Award and in 2023 he was among the protagonists of the talk show “The Champions Tell their Stories”.