João Carlos de Oliveira

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João Carlos de Oliveira
Personal information
BornMay 28, 1954
Pindamonhangaba, São Paulo, Brazil
DiedMay 29, 1999
São Paulo, Brazil
Medal record
Men's athletics
Representing  Brazil
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 1976 Montreal Triple jump
Bronze medal – third place 1980 Moscow Triple jump
Pan American Games
Gold medal – first place 1975 Mexico City Long jump
Gold medal – first place 1975 Mexico City Triple jump
Gold medal – first place 1979 San Juan Long jump
Gold medal – first place 1979 San Juan Triple jump

João Carlos de Oliveira, also known as "João do Pulo" (May 28, 1954 – May 29, 1999) was a Brazilian athlete who competed in the triple jump and the long jump.[1]

Born in Pindamonhangaba, São Paulo De Oliveira won two Olympic bronze medals. His personal best of 17.89 metres, set on October 15, 1975 in Pan American Games, stood as the world record until 1985. As of today, it is still in the top twenty of all-time best results in the event.[1]

Career[edit]

Orphaned by his mother, he started working at the age of seven, as a car washer. In 1973, coached by Pedro Henrique de Toledo, he broke the junior triple jump world record at the South American Athletics Championships with the mark of 14.75 m. In 1975, already as an adult athlete at the Pan American Games in Mexico City, the corporal of the Brazilian Army won the gold medal in the long jump with the mark of 8.19 m and, on October 15, also the gold medal in the triple jump, with the incredible mark of 17.89 m, breaking the world record of this modality in 45 cm, that belonged to the Soviet Viktor Saneyev.

He was the gold medal favorite in the triple jump at the Montreal Olympics, but, recovering from belly surgery, he jumped just 16.90 m and was surpassed by Saneyev (17.29 m) and the American James Butts (17.18 m), taking the bronze medal. In addition, he was fourth in the long jump. At the Pan American Games in Puerto Rico, he became twice champion in both the triple jump and the long jump, accumulating a four-time Pan American championship in two events. In the latter, he defeated none other than the future four-time Olympic champion of the event, Carl Lewis.

There exists some doubt on the judging of the 1980 Olympic men's triple jump final. Several jumps of winning distance by both Oliveira and Ian Campbell of Australia were adjudged as fouls by the all-Soviet judging panel, despite video replays showing this was not the case. One of Oliveira's jumps was estimated to be a new world record beyond eighteen metres. These decisions resulted in Soviet athletes Jaak Uudmäe and Viktor Saneyev winning the competition with performances in the low 17-metre area. Harry Seinberg, coach to Uudmäe, confirmed off-the-record that the judging had leaned in favour of the home athletes.[2][3]

Only in 2000, twenty years after the Moscow Games, the Australian newspaper The Sydney Morning Herald, the largest in Australia, made a major report demonstrating that the Brazilian's canceled jumps were part of a Soviet operation to give Saneyev the fourth Olympic title. The plan didn't work out because of Uudmäe's best jump, but even so, the gold medal went to the USSR.[4]

In contrast to the lack of luck in the Olympics, in the pre-World Championships in Athletics, João do Pulo was three-time world champion in the triple jump in 1977 (in Düsseldorf), 1979 (in Montreal) and 1981 (in Rome, with 22.37 m, beating Jaak Uudmäe, a year after the Olympics, and future world record holder Willie Banks of the United States). Flag bearer of Brazil in the opening parade in Montreal 1976 and in Moscow 1980, João was the main idol of the Brazilian sport between 1975 and 1981.[5]

Death[edit]

In 1981, he was in a car accident near São Paulo in which he lost one leg. Afterward, he became a vocal advocate for the rights of the disabled. He died in 1999 from complications of alcoholism.[6]

His world record was only broken almost ten years later, by the North American Willie Banks, with 17.90 m, in Indianapolis, on June 16, 1985. His Brazilian and South American record was only broken more than twenty-one years ago. later, by Jadel Gregório, with 17.90 m, in Belém, on May 20, 2007 (who coincidentally was also an athlete of João do Pulo's former coach).[7]

International competitions[edit]

Year Competition Venue Position Event Notes
Representing  Brazil
1972 South American Junior Championships Asunción, Paraguay 1st Triple jump 14.67 m
1974 South American Championships Santiago, Chile 7th High jump 1.85 m
3rd Long jump 7.17 m
1st Triple jump 16.34 m
1975 South American Championships Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 1st 4 × 100 m relay 40.8 s
1st Long jump 7.66 m
1st Triple jump 16.48 m
Pan American Games Mexico City, Mexico 4th 4 × 100 m relay 39.18 s
1st Long jump 8.19 m
1st Triple jump 17.89 m WR
1976 Olympic Games Montreal, Canada 5th Long jump 8.00 m
3rd Triple jump 16.90 m
1977 World Cup Düsseldorf, West Germany 1st Triple jump 16.68 m1
South American Championships Montevideo, Uruguay 1st Long jump 7.95 m
1st Triple jump 16.40 m
1979 Pan American Games San Juan, Puerto Rico 1st Long jump 8.18 m
1st Triple jump 17.27 m
World Cup Montreal, Canada 1st Triple jump 17.02 m1
1980 Olympic Games Moscow, Soviet Union 12th (q) Long jump 7.78 m2
3rd Triple jump 17.22 m
1981 World Cup Rome, Italy 1st Triple jump 17.37 m1
South American Championships La Paz, Bolivia 1st Triple jump 17.05 m

1Representing the Americas

2Did not start in the final

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "João Carlos de Oliveira". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 7 September 2016.
  2. ^ Série de documentários retrata a emoção do esporte (in Portuguese). Estadao (2014-12-02). Retrieved 2018-04-01.
  3. ^ Lane, Tim (2013-08-13). Cheating the only conclusion you can jump to. Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2018-04-01.
  4. ^ Há dez anos, o Brasil perdia João do Pulo
  5. ^ Há dez anos, o Brasil perdia João do Pulo
  6. ^ Há dez anos, o Brasil perdia João do Pulo
  7. ^ Há dez anos, o Brasil perdia João do Pulo
Records
Preceded by Men's Triple Jump World Record Holder
15 October 1975 – 16 June 1985
Succeeded by
Awards
Preceded by United Press International
Athlete of the Year

1975
Succeeded by