After the failure of the world record holder, George Horine, to clear 6-3¼ (1.91), Alma Richards and the German, Hans Liesche, battled it out for the 1912 Olympic high jump title. Richards cleared 6-4 (1.93) on his final attempt and, with the German failing three times, the gold medal went to the 22-year-old Brigham Young student. Richards’ Olympic victory was his major championship honor, although he won the high jump and standing broad jump at the 1919 Inter-Allied Games. An extremely versatile athlete, he won AAU titles in the high jump in 1913, the shot put in 1918, and the decathlon in 1915. He also had seven other podium finishes at the AAU in the shot put, discus throw, 56-lb weight throw for distance, 56-lb weight throw for height, and 35-lb weight throw for height. Richards later studied at Cornell, Stanford for graduate school, and Southern Cal for law school. Although he passed the California bar, he elected to become a science teacher in the Los Angeles area.
Personal Bests: HJ – 1.956 (1915); SP – 42-3¾ (12.90) (1918); Decathlon – 5,719 (1912).
United States