Bob Beamon

Robert Beamon (born August 29, 1946) is an American former track and field athlete, best known for his world record in the long jump at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics. On October 18, 1968, with his first jump, he broke the existing world record by a margin of 55 cm, and his record stood for almost 23 years, until Mike Powell broke it in 1991. Beamon was born in South Jamaica, Queens, New York, and grew up in the Jamaica Houses; his mother died of tuberculosis when he was eleven months old and he was raised by his maternal grandmother. He later transferred to the University of Texas at El Paso on a track and field scholarship. He is in the National Track and Field Hall of Fame, and in 1983 he was one of the first athletes inducted into the United States Olympic Hall of Fame.