Reynaldo Brown (born December 6, 1950 in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

) is an American track and field athlete, known for the

high jump The high jump is a track and field event in which competitors must jump unaided over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights without dislodging it. In its modern, most-practiced format, a bar is placed between two standards with a crash mat f ...

. He competed in the

1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1968), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XIX Olimpiada) and commonly known as Mexico 1968 ( es, México 1968), were an international multi-sport eve ...

at the beginning of his senior year in high school, finishing fifth. His participation in that transitional event had him witnessing teammate

Dick Fosbury Richard Douglas Fosbury (born March 6, 1947) is an American retired high jumper, who is considered one of the most influential athletes in the history of track and field. Besides winning a gold medal at the 1968 Olympics, he revolutionized the h ...

winning the gold medal using the Fosbury Flop, leaving Brown as one of the last successful jumpers to use the

straddle technique The straddle technique was the dominant style in the high jump before the development of the Fosbury Flop. It is a successor of the Western roll, with which it is sometimes confused. Unlike the scissors or flop style of jump, where the jumper a ...

. While at

Compton High School Compton High School is a high school in Compton, California, United States, part of the Compton Unified School District. History The school opened in 1896 as Compton Union High School and was later re-established as Compton Senior High School i ...

, Brown won the

CIF California State Meet The CIF California State Meet is the annual championship track and field meet for the California Interscholastic Federation. The meet was started in 1915 for boys and 1974 for girls. Every athlete in every high school in California has a direc ...

three straight times, after being overshadowed by teammate Bill Morris as a freshman. He was the first high school athlete to jump seven feet. He was invited to that year's Semifinal Olympic Trials, an elimination event. Finishing fourth he qualified to the Olympic Trials at

Echo Summit Echo Summit is a mountain pass over the Sierra Nevada in the western United States, located in eastern El Dorado County, California. At above sea level, it is the highest point on U.S. Route 50 in California, which traverses it at postmile 66 ...

. Brown had to defeat another high school phenom, John Hartfield to make the team, ultimately finishing second behind another Californian

Ed Caruthers Edward Julius Caruthers Jr. (born April 13, 1945) is an American former athlete who competed mainly in the men's high jump event during his career. Born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, he competed for the United States at the 1968 Summer Olympics h ...

, the future silver medalist and ahead of Fosbury. Brown returned to school late in the term after his Olympic adventure. 2 months behind, he had to study hard to catch up. By February, he led his Compton team to the

CIF Cif is a French brand of household cleaning products owned by the Anglo-Dutch company Unilever, known as Jif in Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Middle East and the Nordic countries. Cif was launched in France in 1965 and was marketed in competit ...

State basketball championship. He was ''

Track and Field News ''Track & Field News'' is an American monthly sports magazine founded in 1948 by brothers Bert Nelson and Cordner Nelson, focused on the world of track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on runni ...

'' "High School Athlete of the Year" in 1968. Brown continued his education at

Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (California Polytechnic State University, Cal Poly"Cal Poly" may also refer to California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt in Arcata, California or California State Polytechnic Univ ...

. While at Cal Poly, he won two NCAA Division II National Championships, which qualified him to compete and also win the Division I National Championship each of those years. In the process he set the NCAA Small School, Cal Poly school and National Collegiate record at 7'4" in 1973. In 1993, he was inducted into the Cal Poly Athletics Hall of Fame. Brown was one of the most consistent 7 foot jumpers of the 1970s. He won the

USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships The USA Track & Field Outdoor Championships is an annual track and field competition organized by USA Track & Field, which serves as the American national championships for the sport. Since the year 1992, in the years which feature a Summer Olym ...

in 1970 and 1971. In between those, he won the 1971

USA Indoor Track and Field Championships The USA Indoor Track and Field Championships is an annual indoor track and field competition organized by USA Track & Field, which serves as the American national championships for the sport. In years which feature a World Indoor Championships in ...

. 2009 at age 58 Brown competed in a Senior Games. In November 2015, Brown received the Athletes in Excellence Award from The Foundation for Global Sports Development, in recognition of his community service efforts and work with youth. Brown had a kidney transplant and credits his athletic conditioning to his recovery and survival. In February 2017, Brown, who is also a photographer, got his works displayed through the

Art of the Olympians Art of the Olympians (AOTO) is an organization and program of Olympian and Paralympian artists that promotes the Olympic ideals of values, integrity, character, respect, honor, and work ethic through exhibitions and educational programs. It puts ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Reynaldo Living people 1950 births American male high jumpers Athletes (track and field) at the 1968 Summer Olympics Olympic track and field athletes of the United States Athletes (track and field) at the 1971 Pan American Games Sportspeople from Compton, California Cal Poly Mustangs track and field Track and field athletes from California Pan American Games track and field athletes for the United States American masters athletes Cal Poly Mustangs athletes College men's track and field athletes in the United States