Arnie Robinson Jr., Olympic Long Jump Champion, Dies at 72

“It was no miracle, only the Lord above can do miracles,” he said. “But it was damn near it.”

In 1976 in Montreal, Mr. Robinson, 28 at the time, got his Olympic gold, leaping 27 feet 4¾ inches on the first jump of the competition.

Over all, he won seven national long jump titles, and he was the top-ranked long jumper in the world from 1976 to 1978.

He retired from competition in 1979 and in 1982 became a coach at San Diego Mesa College, where he also was a professor of health and exercise science until his retirement in 2010, the college said.

In a statement, U.S.A. Track Field, the governing body for the sport in the United States, described Mr. Robinson as “one of the greatest long jumpers in history.”

Arnie Paul Robinson Jr. was born on April 7, 1948, in San Diego. His father, Arnie Robinson Sr., was an electrician and a small-business owner. His mother, Verneater Robinson, was a lifelong volunteer at Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church in San Diego.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/09/sports/arnie-robinson-dead-covid.html