Leo Sexton

Leo Sexton 1932

Leo Joseph Sexton (born August 27, 1909 in Danvers , Massachusetts , † September 6, 1968 in Perry , Oklahoma ) was an American athlete . With a height of 1.93 m, his competition weight was 108 kg.

Like Herman Brix, Leo Sexton had exceeded the world record of the Czech František Douda , which was 16.04 m, by three centimeters with 16.07 m in the run-up to the 1932 Olympic Games , but these widths were never submitted for recognition. In the US Trials, Sexton qualified ahead of Nelson Gray and Harlow Rothert , while the more highly rated Herman Brix only finished fifth. Meanwhile, the Pole Zygmunt Heljasz had increased the world record to 16.05 m.

A match between the Americans and the Europeans was therefore expected for the games in Los Angeles. Harlow Rothert hit the ball in the first shot to 15.67 m, which should be enough for a silver medal in front of Douda, Hirschfeld and Gray. Only Leo Sexton could surpass Rothert's width. In the last attempt he even managed 16.00 m, the first 16-meter stroke in Olympic history.

After the Olympic Games, Sexton broke the world record twice with 16.13 m and on August 27 with 16.16 m. However, the width of 16.16 m was the only officially recognized world record for sextons. A month later, Douda took back the world record.

Leo Sexton was only in the top of the world from 1931 (15.41 m) to 1933 (15.46 m). Only in 1932 he became champion of the Amateur Athletic Union . After his sporting career, Sexton worked in an insurance company, where he rose to become vice president.

literature

• Manfred Holzhausen: World records and world record holders, shot put and discus throw , Grevenbroich 2000
• Bill Mallon / Ian Buchanan: Quest for Gold , New York 1984 ISBN 0-88011-217-4
• Ekkehard zur Megede: The Modern Olympic Century 1896-1996 Track and Fields Athletics , Berlin 1999, published by the German Society for Athletics Documentation eV

Web links

• Leo Sexton in the Sports-Reference database (English; archived from the original )