2015.09.23 有史以来最伟大的运动员

shiyi18

The greatest athlete of all time
The former sprinter Michael Johnson credits Jesse Owens with making him a better athlete – and for leading the fight against injustices in athletics

Sep 23rd 2015 (Updated Aug 9th 2016)

Share

Give
Michael Johnson, 47, is an American sports commentator and former sprinter, whose unusual running gait didn’t stop him winning eight World Championship gold medals. James “Jesse” Owens (1913-80) was an American athlete who, in a propaganda disaster for Adolf Hitler, won four golds at the 1936 Berlin Olympics in Berlin

I was trying to make history. At the Atlanta Olympics of 1996, I wanted to become the first man to win a gold medal in both the 400 metres and the 200 metres. It was after I won the 400 that I received a letter from Jesse Owens’s widow. She told me that watching me run reminded her of Jesse – and that was a really special thing for me. And I went on and won the 200 metres in a world-record time.

The person who shaped what I became, the man who most inspired me, was a truck-driver: Paul Johnson, my father. But Jesse matters to me more than any other athlete in history. He wasn’t a childhood role model – I was always outside playing sports, not watching it on television – but he became my inspiration, role model and hero afterwards, when I became a professional athlete. That’s when I realised that he was the greatest athlete of all time, at least in my opinion. His performance in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin was remarkable. Every Olympic athlete is under pressure – I know that – but what Jesse experienced in Nazi Germany as a black athlete was different to anything any athlete has experienced before or after. And yet he was still able to deliver. He won, and he showed the world many important truths at the same time. There will never be another athlete like Jesse.


He had to put up with racial problems and issues both on and off the track, yet still succeeded at the highest level. The pressure had to be unbelievable. I think he inspired me to be a better athlete. I can never be like him – but if I can come close, it’s a great honour.

Jesse Owens was truly special as a person and as an athlete. It’s because of people like him that I and many other athletes have the opportunities we do. The fight against injustices of all kinds, not just racial, continues, and we can all play a part. I try to play mine.

illustration david mahoney



有史以来最伟大的运动员
前短跑运动员迈克尔-约翰逊认为是杰西-欧文斯让他成为了一名更好的运动员--并且领导了反对竞技体育中不公正现象的斗争。

2015年9月23日（2016年8月9日更新）


47岁的迈克尔-约翰逊是美国体育评论员和前短跑运动员，他不寻常的跑步步态并没有阻止他赢得八枚世界锦标赛金牌。詹姆斯-"杰西"-欧文斯（1913-80）是一名美国运动员，在阿道夫-希特勒的宣传灾难中，他在1936年的柏林奥运会上赢得了四块金牌

我当时想创造历史。在1996年的亚特兰大奥运会上，我想成为第一个在400米和200米比赛中都获得金牌的人。就在我赢得400米比赛后，我收到了杰西-欧文斯的遗孀的信。她告诉我，看我跑步让她想起了杰西--这对我来说是一件非常特别的事情。然后我继续前进，以创世界纪录的时间赢得了200米比赛。

塑造我的人，最激励我的人，是一位卡车司机。保罗-约翰逊，我的父亲。但杰西对我来说比历史上任何其他运动员都重要。他不是童年的榜样--我总是在外面运动，而不是在电视上看--但他在之后成为我的灵感、榜样和英雄，当我成为一名职业运动员。那时候我才意识到，他是有史以来最伟大的运动员，至少在我看来是这样。他在1936年柏林奥运会上的表现非常出色。每个奥运会运动员都会有压力--我知道--但杰西作为黑人运动员在纳粹德国所经历的一切，与之前或之后的任何运动员都不同。然而，他仍然能够做到这一点。他赢了，同时他向世界展示了许多重要的真理。永远不会再有像杰西这样的运动员了。


他不得不忍受种族问题和赛场内外的问题，但仍在最高水平上获得了成功。这种压力必须是令人难以置信的。我认为他激励我成为一名更好的运动员。我永远不可能像他一样--但如果我能接近他，那是一种巨大的荣誉。

杰西-欧文斯作为一个人和一个运动员，确实很特别。正是因为有他这样的人，我和其他许多运动员才有这样的机会。反对各种不公正现象的斗争仍在继续，而不仅仅是种族问题，我们都可以发挥自己的作用。我努力发挥我的作用。

插图：大卫-马霍尼