Milt Campbell

Milton Gray Campbell (December 9, 1933 – November 2, 2012) was an American decathlete of the 1950s. In 1956, he became the first African American to win the gold medal in the decathlon of the Summer Olympic Games. Quotes I don't want to sound angry, but I attribute some of the blame to the fact that I was the first black to win the decathlon, As far as performance, it was one of the best. But it certainly didn't get the recognition it was due. Here I was the world's greatest athlete and I couldn't get a job in the thing I do best, It's different today, when you have 10 times the talent around that you did in the '50s. But an athlete like me not being able to hook on with any team back then? Call it what you want, I feel it was basically prejudice because of a black man with a white wife. That was a totally different era from now. People weren't as understanding. You get burned out with that kind of thing after a while -- so we went to Canada. It was tough to take. I knew my athletic ability was as good as that of anybody on the face of the earth, and I was coachable. It took a long time to get past the anger. They have themes like `Going for the Gold,' or `Reaching for all of it, I tailor my speech to the group and the situation. I've found out that the things I have to say apply to whatever a person is striving for. First, have a goal, It should be a goal you have to really reach for -- not something that's attainable tomorrow. But it's not a bad idea to set little goals along the way. Second, once you know where it is you want to go, you have to be dedicated to the idea, and pursue it. Persistence is the antidote to failure. Then you have to have the discipline to do all the things you have to do to accomplish what you want to do. But this isn't something that really has to be taught. If you have a goal and are in love with the idea, you will develop the discipline. Later they wrote me a letter saying I was the best speaker they had had in two years, but at the beginning they insisted that I come in so they could talk to me because they knew the other names but they didn't know who I was. If you'll look at my athletic career, it's as great a career as that of anyone who ever came down the pike. Decathlon star Milt Campbell bypassed again by Olympic hall, April 29 1986 External links Category:Track and field athletes Category:1933 births Category:Sportspeople from the United States Category:2012 deaths Category:Olympic gold medalists Category:African Americans