 Hansen in the 1960s | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Frederick Morgan Hansen | |||||||||||
| Born | December 29, 1940 (1940-12-29) (age 84) Cuero, Texas, U.S.[1] | |||||||||||
| Height | 183 cm (6 ft 0 in)[1] | |||||||||||
| Weight | 75 kg (165 lb) | |||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||
| Sport | Athletics | |||||||||||
Event(s) | Pole vault,long jump | |||||||||||
| Club | Rice Owls, Houston | |||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | ||||||||||||
| Personalbest(s) | PV – 5.28 m (1964) LJ – 7.26 m (1961)[1][2] | |||||||||||
Medal record
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Frederick Morgan Hansen (born December 29, 1940) is an American former athlete who competed mainly in the pole vault.[1]
A 1963 graduate ofRice University, he competed in the pole vault for the United States in the1964 Summer Olympics held inTokyo, Japan, where he won the gold medal.[3] He held theworld record in the pole vault for almost 2 years, first set as 5.23 m (17 ft1+3⁄4 in) on June 13, 1964, and then improved to 5.28 m (17 ft3+3⁄4 in) on July 25, 1964, at the USA vs USSR dual meet at theLos Angeles Memorial Coliseum.[1][2][4]
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Going into the 1964 Olympics, the United States had never lost an Olympic pole vault competition. In the final, the last remaining American was Hansen, who at the time was also theworld record holder. The field included two other previous world record holders and decathleteC. K. Yang. Hansen cleared 5 meters on his first attempt, but so did three German athletes. Hansen then passed the next height, watching as onlyWolfgang Reinhardt was able to clear. Re-entering the competition at 5.10, Hansen failed his first two attempts, but so did Reinhardt. Hansen then sailed over his final attempt, while Reinhart could not. Hansen continued the American streak, which would survive through one more Olympics until the1972 pole vault controversy, when defending championBob Seagren had his pole confiscated at the games and had to compete on an unfamiliar, borrowed pole.
Hansen is featured on the cover of the bookThe Pole Vault: A Violent Ballet by David Butler.
Hansen was an avid golfer, and played at the 1980U.S. Amateur golf championship.[1] He residesGonzales County, Texas. He formerly practiced dentistry inHouston, Texas, in the Memorial area of town. He was Inducted into the Texas Track and Field Coaches Hall of Fame, Class of 2016.[5]
| Records | ||
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| Preceded by | Men's pole vault world record holder June 13, 1964 – May 14, 1966 | Succeeded by |
| Men's track and road athletes |
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| Men's field athletes | ||
| Women's track athletes | ||
| Women's field athletes | ||
| Coaches |
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