Man Who Could Fly: The Bob Beamon Story

by Bob Beamon

The Olympic gold medal-winning high-jumper shares the lessons of his life, including his troubled childhood, romantic disappointments, athletic successes, academic obstacles, and ultimate happiness

Genres: Sports

175 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 1999

Reviews

[Charles James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great inspirational story

[Ice · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this refreshing biography, Olympian Bob Beamon begins by recounting his difficult childhood. His mother died shortly after his birth, and he spent his formative years in an abusive household with an uncaring grandmother and an alcoholic father.

Amazingly, this scraggly inner-city New Yorker, who teetered on the edge of juvenile delinquency, rose to Olympic stardom. His remarkable long jump of more than 29 feet at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City remains an Olympic record. In addition to his track career, Beamon retraces his bumpy life, including his college days at the University of Texas in El Paso, where he and other black athletes not only faced racism from townspeople and peers but from the school's athletic director who "fondly" called the athletes "niggers."

While Beamon admits to making "bad choices" during his lifetime (including four failed marriages), he says he eventually put his life in order because he "refused to stay down." An inspirational and sports biography.