Alvin Kraenzlein biography
Alvin Kraenzlein, (born December 12, 1876, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.—died January 6, 1928, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania), American athlete, the primary competitor to win 4 gold medals at a single Olympics. He is credited with having originated the fashionable strategy of hurdling, and his world report within the 220-yard hurdles was unbroken for greater than a quarter-century.
During the mid-Eighteen Nineties Kraenzlein competed for the University of Wisconsin and the University of Pennsylvania, excelling in sprints and lengthy jumps, and he developed an modern strategy of main with a straight leg over hurdles. In 1898 he set a report of 15.2 sec within the 120-yard hurdles. Also in 1898 Kraenzlein ran the 220-yard hurdles (forerunner of the 200-metre hurdles) in 23.6 sec, a world report that lasted for 26 years.
At the 1900 Olympic Games in Paris, Kraenzlein positioned first within the 60- and 200-metre hurdles (each of which had been later discontinued from the Olympic program), in addition to within the 110-metre hurdles. In the lengthy soar, world-record-holder Meyer Prinstein gained the qualifying spherical with a leap of seven.17 metres (23.52 toes). However, Prinstein and the remainder of the athletes from Syracuse University weren't allowed to compete on Sundays and thus missed the finals of the occasion. Prinstein hoped that his qualifying mark would arise to the jumps within the remaining spherical. It didn't. Kraenzlein, competing for the University of Pennsylvania, which allowed its athletes to compete on Sundays, beat Prinstein’s mark by l cm, successful the gold medal.
After the Paris Games Kraenzlein retired from athletic competitors. He later coached observe and area on the University of Michigan.