5. HONESTY – The Honesty of Luz Long
On the morning of August 4th, Luz and nineteen of the world’s best long jumpers gathered in front of 90,000 cheering spectators, on the field of the massive Olympic stadium. This was the day the new king of the long jump would be crowned. Luz was ready. Of all his competitors, Luz was only concerned about one, the American Jesse Owens, the long jump world record-holder. Born in Alabama, grandson of a slave, Jesse was the rival Luz knew would be his biggest challenge. Despite Jesse’s presence, Luz was confident. In the preliminary round, he had one of the best jumps of his career and easily advanced to the finals. The mostly German crowd cheered wildly. From his private viewing box, Hitler clapped with pride. Knowing he was moving on, Luz turned his attention to Jesse, who had three attempts to make the finals. He watched with surprise as Jesse’s first attempt ended with a foul. The American had stepped beyond the line on the takeoff board. Luz remained composed but noticed self-doubt in Jesse’s face. On Jesse’s next attempt, Luz paid attention to the place Jesse launched from. This time Jesse’s foot placement was fine, but his jump fell short of the qualifying dis- tance. Luz was shocked. The best long jumper in the world had one more chance to qualify for the next round or be eliminated.
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