By Dr. Adewale Troutman
Last year, more than 300 area youth, ages 5 to 18, participated in the first annual Tommie Smith Youth Track Meet at University of Louisville 's Owsley Frazier Cardinal Park .
We had a blast! The event resembled a mini-Olympics. We had an opening ceremony with a parade of athletes and a welcome from Mayor Jerry Abramson. Olympic gold medalists Tommie Smith and Bob Beamon led the kids in the athletes' oath. Kids who had never participated in track and field events were running and jumping and throwing with all their hearts. “Seasoned” youth, members of local track clubs and track teams, also competed to break records and achieve personal bests. Local athletic legends Wiley Brown, Lenny Lyles and Wade Houston joined Olympians Tommie Smith and Bob Beamon in cheering the kids on.
In case you need a refresher course in Olympic history, Tommie Smith is the only man in the history of track and field to hold 11 world records simultaneously. He won the gold medal in the 200 meters at the 1968 Olympic Games. Smith gained worldwide prominence when he and teammate, bronze-medal winner John Carlos, raised gloved fists during the medal ceremony to protest racial discrimination in America . The photo of this nonviolent demonstration became one of the iconic images of the 1960s and '70s.
Bob Beamon set a world record for the long jump at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City with a jump of 29 feet, 2-1/2 inches. His world record stood for 23 years, and was named by Sports Illustrated magazine as one of the five greatest sports moments of the 20th century .
After a successful career in the National Football League and as a college instructor and track coach, Tommie Smith went on to organize track clubs for disadvantaged youth in Oakland , Calif. The clubs have had remarkable success, not only in raising physical fitness levels among participants, but also in raising academic performance.
The Tommie Smith Youth Track initiative calls attention to the urgent need for structured fitness programs for our youth. It is an initiative under the Mayor's Healthy Hometown Movement and the newly established Center for Health Equity. I am very proud and excited that Louisville is only the second site in the country for this exciting youth track initiative.
Our children face a health crisis that must be addressed immediately. Childhood obesity is pervasive, youth violence is commonplace, and our children are not reaching their potential.
Youth track programs can help nurture and empower young people. Anyone can run and jump and it doesn't require expensive equipment or supplies. It's a great way to get kids moving and physically active.
The Louisville Department of Public Health and Wellness partners with the Jefferson County Public Schools , Louisville Metro Parks , the YMCA, the University of Louisville , and area track clubs to hold the Tommie Smith Youth Track Meet. This year's meet will be held Aug. 10 -11 and promises to be even bigger and better than before. We will return to the beautiful, first class track stadium — Owsley Frazier Cardinal Park on the University of Louisville campus.
Encourage any young person you know, ages 5 to 18, to participate. For more information and registration, go to www.louisvilleky.gov/health .
Another way you can get involved in the Tommie Smith Track Meet is to make it possible for a child to participate. A $50 donation sponsors one child and provides their AAU registration fee, a T-shirt, water and refreshments, a bronze, silver or gold medal or a fourth through eighth place ribbon. Your $50 tax-deductible donation can be made to the Friends of Louisville Metro Health and Wellness, 400 E. Gray St. , Louisville , Ky. , 40202 .
