Pop quiz: Who's Fresno's greatest Olympian
In another round of blogoddity (that's a combo of blog and oddity), I'm going to talk about sports. I'm not really a sports fan, mind you. But I've caught the Olympic fever. And as the games come to a close, and we think about area athletes who were/are at the games (and there are a few), I pose this to you:
Who is Fresno's (you can make it the Central Valley) greatest Olympian.
My top five:
* Andy Finch- Every athlete gets to travel the world doing what they love, I guess. But when the thing you love is snowboarding, it just seems so ... cool. Plus, the guy's got his own fan club.
* Rafer Johnson- As a proud Kingsburg boy, I have to pick Rafer Johnson. I mean, the city named a school after him.
* Steven Abas- When I was in 8th grade, I was five-foot-shrimpy and weighed 85lbs. Which apparently is a wrestling coach's dream. I went to one practice, almost died, and gave up the sport for good.
Looking back, I kinda wish I would have gone twice.
* Tommie Smith- Good or bad, Tommie Smith's raised-fist salute has become iconic. I am way too young to remember the event, but it's one of the first thing that comes to mind when I think of the games. The Bee's George Hostetter has a good take on Smith's Olympic impact.
PJ Haggerty- OK, bowling is not an Olympic sport. But it should be. And if it was, this guy (he's a Collegiate Bowler Of The Year) would probably represent.
Or, maybe, the two-time PBA champ Rhino Page, who's not from Fresno, but spent some time here.
Bill McEwen...
Gives Famous some love, then drops a whole lot of local Olympic knowlegde. It's a good list.
Bob Mathias?
Bob Mathias?
I'm also a fan of Tommie Smith, because he's a Spartan like me.
Betty Rocker/Hari Kari
Obviously those are my faves. Gotta stay loyal to the barbaric sluttiness that is Roller Derby.
for me
randy williams is one of my favorites. i admit, it's partially because i've met the guy and know some athletes he coached. (he was also a coach @ edison when i was on the track team).
he was on the olympic team in '72 in munich, when the israeli team was attacked. randy was sponsored(?) by puma and when the ish went down the head of puma took randy to his own house. and he won gold. in '76 (montreal) randy won silver.
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