Died: Lee Evans, 74
On May 19, in Lagos, Nigeria; following a major stroke. For more on the ’68 Olympic champion/WR holder see Last Lap.
Died: Ron Hill, 82
On May 23, in Hyde, England. The second marathoner to break the 2:10 barrier, he won Boston, the European Championships and the Commonwealth Games (with a 2:09:28 that stood as his PR). He World Ranked 6 times, and was No. 1 in ’70. Considered by some as the ’72 Olympic favorite, he finished 6th in his third Olympic appearance. In ’64 he had finished 18th in the 10,000 and 19th in the marathon, while ’68 brought a 10,000 7th. He has a spot on the WR-setter roles in the 10M (twice), 15M and 25K.
Died: Neville Myton, 74
On May 19, in Margate, Florida; of cancer. The 2-time Jamaican Olympian (800 and 1500 in ’64, 800 in ’68) set a World Junior Record of 1:47.2 in ’64. He later schooled in the U.S., but never ran in the NCAA.
Died: Christa Stubnick, 87
On May 13, in Borken, Germany. The East German was the silver medalist in the 100 and 200 in the ’56 Olympics. She also ran on WR squads in the 4×1 (4 times) and 4×2 (3), and also set a World indoor best in the long jump. At 100 and 200, she World Ranked twice each (No. 2 in both in ’56), although she would have had more Rankings earlier in her career if the compilations had been in play then. PRs: 11.5 and 23.5.
Died: Pavol Szikora, 69
On May 22, in Fil’akovo, Slovakia. The Slovak walker represented Czechoslovakia and World Ranked 4 times in the 50K, with a best of No. 8 in ’84, the year he placed 2nd in the Friendship Games, the East Bloc’s boycott replacement for the LA Olympics. He did compete in the ’88 and ’92 Games, finishing 10th and 27th. ◻︎