Died: Steve DeAutremont, 74
On January 02, in Centennial, Colorado. Winner of the NCAA hammer in ’69 and ’70 for Oregon State. A 7-time U.S. Ranker 1969–75, he was No. 1 in ’74, the year he won the AAU title.
Died: Clem Eischen, 93
On December 07, in Gresham, Oregon. Twice an NCAA scorer for in the mile for Washington State (5th as a frosh in ’46), Eischen shocked by finishing runner-up in the ’48 Olympic Trials, but didn’t advance out of the heats in London. In ’51 he finished 2nd in the NCAA 880.
Died: Paul Foreman, 81
On December 15, in Louisville. A 3-time Big 10 long jump champ for Illinois, the Jamaican won the ’58 Commonwealth title. He tied for 4th in the ’59 NCAA and was 8th the following year before going on to take 12th in the Olympics.
Died: Margitta Gummel, 79
On January 26, in Wietmarschen, Germany. The ’68 Olympic shot champion representing East Germany World Ranked 11 times 1962–72. Her sole No.1 Ranking came the year she won the gold medal, but she also rated No. 2 on 4 occasions. She broke the WR 4 times.
Died: Marion Jochman, 85
On December 27, in Bydgoszcz, Poland. The ’60 Olympian ranked No. 10 in the world in the 5000 in ’58.
Died: Vladimir Kiselyov, 65
On January 07, in Kremenchuk, Ukraine. The ’80 Olympic shot gold medalist for the Soviet Union, the Ukrainian was No. 4 twice in the World Rankings, ’79 & ’80.
Died: Bob Maplestone, 74
On January 02, in Seattle. A 4-time NAIA champion for Eastern Washington, the British sub-4:00 miler placed 3rd in the AAU in ’71.
Died: Álvaro Mejía, 80
On January 12, in San Francisco; of pancreatic cancer. A 3-time Colombian Olympian, he was the 10K 10th-placer in the 10,000 at the ’68 Games. He won the Boston Marathon in ’71 and took 48th in Munich the next year.
Died: Bill Nankeville, 95
On January 08, in Laleham, England. The 6th-place finisher in the 1500 at the ’48 Olympics, he won bronze in the ’50 Euros. Later, he ran on three WR-setting British relay teams: 4 x 880 (’51), 4 x 1500 (’53) and 4 x mile (’53). He World Ranked No. 5 in the 1500 in both ’50 & ’51.
Died: Mark Pharoah, 88
On April 27, 2020, in Malvern, England. A shot & discus Olympian in both ’52 & ’56, his best finish was 4th in the discus in Melbourne; that year he was No. 9 in his only World Ranking.
Died: Anneliese Seonbuchner, 91
On November 20, in Nuremberg, Germany. The West German placed 4th in the 80 hurdles at the ’52 Olympics. World Ranked No. 8 in the long jump in ’57.
Died: Rich Torrellas, 70
On December 26; of a heart attack. A member of many USATF coaching staffs and committees over the years, the former hammer thrower was head women’s manager at the ’08 Olympics.
Died: Bob Walters, 93
On December 21, in Fort Worth, Texas. The Longhorn high jumper topped the world lists in ’49 (6-8¼/2.04 to win the Kansas Relays) & ’50 (6-8½/2.045) but didn’t score in the NCAA or AAU either year. World Ranked No. 9 in ’50.
Died: Liane Winter, 78
On January 17, in Germany. The West German marathoner won Boston in ’75 in a World Record 2:42:24.
Died: Mikhail Zhelev, 77
On January 05, in Sliven, Bulgaria. He topped the World Rankings in the steeplechase in ’69, the year he won the European title. He ranked No. 3 the following year. A 2-time steeple and 5K Olympian his highest Games finish was 6th in ’68 steeple.