Athletics at the 1968 Ciudad de México Summer Games:

Dick Fosbury was an average high jumper using the standard straddle when he began experimenting with a technique in which he turned his back to the bar and cleared the bar by arching his back as he went over head-first. It would be termed the Fosbury Flop. There is some controversy as to who actually developed this first, as Canadian jumper Debbie Brill also experimented with style in late 1966, but the technique is always named for Fosbury. Fosbury was not the favorite in 1968. Only a 2.10 jumper in 1967, he had won the 1968 NCAA Championships, but finished third at the US Trials, behind Ed Caruthers and Reynaldo Brown. But at 2.20 (7-2½), only Fosbury, Caruthers and Soviet jumper Valentin Gavrilov were clear, all on first attempts. At 2.22 (7-3¼), Fosbury made it on his first jump, while Caruthers had a miss. Fosbury also clear 2.24 (7-4¼) (3rd attempt) to cement the gold medal, as Caruther could not make the height. Gavrilov would win the 1969 European Championships.