The men's

decathlon The decathlon is a combined event in Athletics (sport), athletics consisting of ten track and field events. The word "decathlon" was formed, in analogy to the word "pentathlon", from Greek language, Greek δέκα (''déka'', meaning "ten") and ...

at the

1960 Summer Olympics The 1960 Summer Olympics ( it, Giochi Olimpici estivi del 1960), officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad ( it, Giochi della XVII Olimpiade) and commonly known as Rome 1960 ( it, Roma 1960), were an international multi-sport event held ...

took place between 5 September and 6 September at the

Stadio Olimpico The Stadio Olimpico (English: ''Olympic Stadium'') is the largest sports facility in Rome, Italy, seating over 70,000 spectators. It is located within the Foro Italico sports complex, north of the city. The structure is owned by the Italian Na ...

Analysis

Despite the presence of previous world record holder Vasili Kuznetsov, the competition quickly became a battle between UCLA training partners Rafer Johnson and Yang Chuan-kwang, known as C.K. Yang. After two years of training together under "Ducky" Drake, each knew the other's abilities. Yang's abilities lay in the speed events, building an almost 90 point lead in the first two events (100m and long jump). Johnson was superior in the throwing events. At the end of the first day, Johnson had a 55-point advantage. The second day began with Yang speeding to a 180-point advantage in the 110 hurdles. Johnson countered with a 270-point gain in the Discus. Yang continued to dominate in the pole vault but Johnson set a personal record in the event, minimizing Yang's gain. Yang followed that by staying close to Johnson in the javelin, leaving the final event, Yang's best event, the 1500m to decide the competition. Both knew Yang would need to defeat Johnson by 10 seconds to win. Johnson did not break, finishing a mere 1.2 seconds behind Yang to claim the gold medal. Yang beat Johnson in seven of the ten events, but Johnson beat Yang by significant margins in the shot put and discus to win. The two warmly congratulated each other after the conclusion of the event and waved to the crowd.

Records

Prior to this competition, the existing world and Olympic records were as follows:

Results

100m

Long jump

Shot put

High jump

400m

110m hurdles

Discus throw

Pole vault

Javelin throw

1500m

Final standings

References

External links

Olympic Games Official Report 1960 Rome-Volume IOlympic Games Official Report 1960 Rome-Volume II
{{DEFAULTSORT:Athletics at the 1960 Summer Olympics - Men's decathlon

Decathlon The decathlon is a combined event in Athletics (sport), athletics consisting of ten track and field events. The word "decathlon" was formed, in analogy to the word "pentathlon", from Greek language, Greek δέκα (''déka'', meaning "ten") and ...

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Ja ...

Men's events at the 1960 Summer Olympics