Decker at center, Budd to the left
August 11, 1984: One of the most anticipated matchups of the 1984 Olympic Games takes place at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The result is one that no one could have anticipated.
Mary Decker, a 26-year-old native of the suburbs of L.A., had been one of the top middle-distance runners in the world, winning a Gold Medal in the 1979 Pan American Games. Unable to compete in the 1980 Olympics in Moscow because of the U.S. boycott, she just kept going.
At the 1983 World Championships of Track & Field, she won Gold in both the 1,500 meters and the 3,000 meters. Sports Illustrated named her its Sportswoman of the Year -- before the adoption of the title "Sportsperson," this meant that she was named ahead of all male athletes as well -- and, with the Olympics coming to America the next year, she was considered a favorite to win Gold.
And yet, there was an unexpected foreshadowing on that cover.
The Dreaded SI Cover Jinx?
Zola Budd was only 18. Early in 1984, she set the women's world record in the 5,000 meters. But it was not accepted as a world record by the IAAF, the world governing body for track & field, because she was from South Africa, which had been excluded from various sports competitions due to its apartheid government. And she would be excluded from the Olympics as well.
That wasn't Budd's fault, but, due to her grandfather being a British citizen, the International Olympic Committee's rules allowed her to apply for British citizenship and compete for Great Britain in Los Angeles. She did, and this angered many people.
It shouldn't have: She wasn't breaking any rules by doing this. Instead, she was a victim of the rules, who was now using the rules to allow herself to compete. Not to guarantee victory, but just to be allowed to compete. After all, she was, thus far, too young to have even voted in a South African election, so she had nothing to do with their evil racist government.
There was also an element of weirdness in that she competed barefoot. At the time, this was legal, but has since been banned. Imagine, in 1984, the year that Nike first began offering huge sneaker contracts, competing in the Olympic Games, and its preparatory events, without even wearing shoes! But she did, including setting an officially-recognized world record in the 2,000 meters. As the renowned British sportscaster David Coleman put it, "The message will now be flashed around the world: Zola Budd is no myth."
Decker and Budd were entered into one race together, the 3,000 meters. Decker had specialized in shorter distances, Budd in longer ones. Decker led early, but after the 1,500-meter mark, Budd took the lead. Running as a group was an unusual situation for both of them, as they were each used to running in front and well ahead of other competitors.
At 1,700 meters, the first collision occurred. Decker came into contact with one of Budd's legs, knocking Budd slightly off balance. However, both women maintained their close position. Five strides on, at the race time of 4:58, Budd and Decker again made contact, with Budd's left foot brushing Decker's thigh, causing Budd to lose her balance, and sending her into Decker's path.
Decker's spiked running shoe came down hard into Budd's ankle, just above the heel, drawing blood. Videotapes later examined by Olympic officials showed Budd visibly in pain. However, she maintained equilibrium and kept stride.
Decker did not: She fell to the curb, injuring her hip. The fall ended her race, and she was carried off the track in tears by her boyfriend and later, husband, British discus thrower Richard Slaney.
Budd, deeply affected by the occurrence, continued to lead for a while, but faded, finishing 7th. Her finishing time of 8:48 was well outside her best of 8:37. The race was won by of Maricica Puică of Romania, who also won a Bronze Medal in the 1,500 meters. Wendy Sly of Britain won the Silver Medal, and Lynn Williams of Canada won the Bronze Medal.
Budd tried to apologize to Decker in the tunnel after the race, but Decker was upset, and replied, "Don’t bother!" She was now unable to compete in any other races.
Having married Slaney, Decker gave birth to a daughter in 1986, and missed the 1987 World Championships due to injury. She ran in the 1,500 and 3,000 meters in the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, Korea, but was past her prime, and wasn't close. She retired without ever winning an Olympic Medal.
Budd returned to South Africa in 1989, and, with its eligibility restored after the release of Nelson Mandela the next year, was able to represent her home country at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona. (Unlike soccer, for most of FIFA's history, anyway, there is no rule against competing for 2 different countries in the Olympics.) But she never won an Olympic Medal, either. She married and had 3 children.
In 2016, Decker and Budd reunited, and collaborated on a documentary about the event, The Fall. "Looking back on it now, I see it as an unlucky accident," Decker said. She also apologized to Budd for shunning her in the tunnel and after the race, and in a separate interview she said, "I was hurting, both physically and emotionally."
Budd is now coaching at her local university, and still runs long distance. She and Decker got along well when making the documentary and, as well as still sharing a passion for running, they discovered their respective husbands share a birthday.
Budd (left) and Decker, 2016
"Looking back at both our lives," she said, "neither of us had a fair chance of achieving what we really wanted to. Both of us were victims of something that was beyond our control."
*
August 11, 1984 was a Saturday. This was also the day that President Ronald Reagan told a joke about starting a nuclear war with the Soviet Union. I have a separate entry for that event.
These Major League Baseball games were played that day:
* The New York Yankees beat the Cleveland Indians, 10-1 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Mike Pagliarulo and Don Mattingly hit home runs in support of Phil Niekro.
* The New York Mets beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 3-1 at Shea Stadium. George Foster hit a home run, and Rookie of the Year-in-waiting Dwight Gooden struck out 10 batters.
* The Chicago Cubs beat the Montreal Expos, 2-1 at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal. Pete Rose was available for the Expos, but did not play. Five days later, he was traded to the Reds, and named their manager, and his chase for 4,192 career hits was back on.
* The Philadelphia Phillies beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 6-1 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. Steve Carlton was the winning pitcher. Mike Schmidt was 0-for-3, but had an RBI on a sacrifice fly.
* The San Diego Padres beat the Atlanta Braves, 4-1 at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. Graig Nettles hit a home run, and Tony Gwynn went 1-for-4.
* The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Baltimore Orioles, 3-2 at Exhibition Stadium in Toronto. Eddie Murray went 2-for-3, and Cal Ripken went 3-for-4 with an RBI.
* The Houston Astros beat the Cincinnati Reds, 8-4 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati.
* The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Chicago White Sox, 10-5 at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Robin Yount went 1-for-4, and Paul Molitor was injured and did not play.
* The Detroit Tigers beat the Kansas City Royals, 9-5 at Royals Stadium (now Kauffman Stadium) in Kansas City. George Brett went 2-for-4 with a solo home run.
* The Boston Red Sox beat the Texas Rangers, 5-4 at Arlington Stadium in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas. Wade Boggs went 2-for-5 with an RBI.
* The Oakland Athletics beat the California Angels, 3-2 at Anaheim Stadium (now Angel Stadium of Anaheim). An error by Daryl Sconiers on a Mike Davis grounder gave the A's the winning run in the top of the 10th inning. Neither Reggie Jackson nor Rod Carew entered the game for the Angels. Rickey Henderson went 3-for-6 for the A's.
* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat their arch-rivals, the San Francisco Giants, 4-2 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco.
* And the Seattle Mariners beat the Minnesota Twins, 5-4 at the Kingdome in Seattle. Al Cowens singled home the winning run in the bottom of the 10th.
One other item from baseball: Dominican slugger Melky Cabrera was born on this day.
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