This Day in Track & Field, October 18, Iolanda Balas first women to clear six feet (1.83m)-1958, Bob Beamon goes 8.90m (1968)! by Walt Murphy, used with permission.

Walt Murphy is one of the finest track geeks that I know. Walt does #ThisDayinTrack&FieldHistory, an excellent daily service that provides true geek stories about our sport. You can check out the service for FREE with a free one-month trial subscription! (email: WaltMurphy44@gmail.com) for the entire daily service. We will post a few historic moments each day, beginning February 1, 2024.

by Walt Murphy’s News and Results Service (wmurphy25@aol.com), used with permission

This Day in Track & Field-October 18

1958—Romania’s Iolanda Balaș became the first woman to clear 6-feet (1.83) in Bucharest. It was the 5th of her 12 World Records.

WR Progression: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women’s_high_jump_world_record_progression

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iolanda_Balaș

1964–Four days after Billy Mills stunned the track world with his win in the 10,000-meters at the Tokyo Olympics, Bob Schul and Bill Dellinger gave American distance running another boost by winning the gold and bronze medals, respectively, in the 5,000-Meters on a muddy track.