In 214 of Anecdotally Speaking, listen to hear how Richard Fosbury used innovation to defy all odds and win a gold medal in the high jump, forever changing the sport.



In Episode 214 of Anecdotally Speaking, Mark tells a topical story about the Mexico City Olympics in 1968.

This story centers around Richard Fosbury, using innovation to defy all odds and win a gold medal in the high jump, forever changing the sport.

This story underscores how technique can triumph over raw capability and emphasizes the importance of being open to moving beyond traditional practices.

In a business context, this story can serve as a powerful reminder that innovation often requires perseverance and that gaining acceptance for new ideas can be challenging.

Additionally, Mark and Shawn discuss the importance of ensuring your story resonates with your audience.

For your story bank

Tags: Sport, Innovation, Perseverance, Persistence, Ideas

This story starts at: 2:09

Richard Fosbury grew up in Portland Oregon where he dreamed of being an Olympic high jumper. Before Richard Fosbury, the two dominant high jump techniques were the scissor jump or straddle jump, used by all of the top jumpers. In both cases, you were able to land on your feet, which was necessary as there was only a sandpit or rubber on the other side of the jump as opposed to the soft matting presently used. When Richard Fosbury was in high school he desperately wanted to be an elite high jumper but he was not good at the scissors or straddle jumps. In his second year of high school, he failed to meet the qualifying standards of a five-foot (1.52m) jump. He knew he had to do something different to reach his dream so he started working on a new technique in which he flung himself over the bar backwards, which no one had done before. Aided by his education in engineering, he developed the technique to maximise mechanical advantage and practiced for years to master the jump. In college his coach allowed him to use his technique but only in local meets, being forced to straddle jump in competition. Eventually, when Fosbury began breaking school records in practice with his backward jump, the coach allowed him to use his technique in competition. In the lead-up to the Olympics, critics ridiculed his technique with one reporter likening his jump to a “mid-air seizure”. A local Oregon newspaper published an issue leading into the Olympics with a photo of him jumping captioned “Fosbury Flops Over Bar”, coining the iconic name ‘Fosbury Flop’ that is now well known by all. Sure enough on the 20th of October 1968, the Mexico City Olympic gold medal in high jump was won by Richard Fosbury after jumping a height of 2.24m, forever changing the sport. The ironic thing was that 1968 was his one and only Olympics as he was not nearly as naturally gifted as the other high jumpers, meaning as soon as they adopted his technique he wasn’t able to compare. In the following 1972 Olympics, 28 of the 40 high jump competitors used the Fosbury Flop. From 1972 to 2000 34 of the 36 Olympic medallists used the Fosbury Flop.