Forrest Smithson

Forrest Custer Smithson (September 26, 1884 – November 25, 1962) was an American athlete, winner of 110 m hurdles at the 1908 Summer Olympics.

Born in Portland, Oregon, Smithson was a student of theology from Oregon State University and an AAU champion in 1907 and 1909 in the Template:Convert hurdles.

At London, the main favourites were Smithson's teammates John Garrels and Arthur Shaw, who had earlier equaled Alvin Kraenzlein's world record of 15.2 seconds. The 110 m hurdles were not contested on a track as usual but on a special path in the stadium grass. Only Americans reached the final, which was contested on the last day of the London Games. Smithson defeated Garrels and set a new world record of 15.0 seconds.

Forrest Smithson died in Contra Costa County, California, aged 78.

Bible story

There is a widespread story about Smithson winning the gold medal while carrying a Bible in his left hand (ostensibly to protest against the decision to run the 110 m hurdles final on a Sunday). At first, neither the 110 m hurdles heats nor the final were scheduled or planned to take place on Sunday. The story was not mentioned in the newspapers. This story is based on a picture published in the official report, which was taken during the final.

The fact was that Forrest Smithson was a strong Christian and often ran with a Bible in his hand to point people to the source of his strength and inspiration; his relationship with Jesus Christ.

External links

• Template:Sports-reference; retrieved 2010-02-02.
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