Walter George Marty (August 15, 1910 – April 25, 1995) was an American high jumper. He set both indoor and outdoor world records in his speciality and was national co-champion both indoors and outdoors in his peak year of 1934.
As a student at Fresno High School, Marty jumped 6 ft 4+1⁄4 in (1.93 m) at the 1929 West Coast Relays, setting a United States high school record; [1] [2] only five athletes of any age jumped higher that year. [3] Marty duplicated the mark in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum while winning the 1929 CIF California State Meet. [4] In 1930 Marty was national junior champion [5] and represented the United States in a dual meet against the British Empire; he cleared a personal best 6 ft 5+1⁄4 in (1.96 m) in that meet and won ahead of national senior champion Anton Burg. [6] [7]
In June 1931 Marty cleared a personal best 6 ft 6+3⁄8 in (1.99 m) at the inaugural Kern County Relays in Taft; [8] at the national ( AAU) senior championships three weeks later he jumped 6 ft 4+3⁄8 in (1.94 m) and placed second to Burg, who defended his title. [9] Marty was selected to tour South Africa that fall as one of nine American track and field athletes. [10] [11] In Queenstown he cleared 6 ft 6+3⁄4 in (2.00 m) for a new South African all-comers record; [12] it was the second-best jump in the world that summer, behind George Spitz at 6 ft 7+5⁄16 in (2.01 m). [13]
Marty remained in good form in 1932; he cleared 6 ft 6+1⁄2 in (1.99 m) at the Far Western Conference meet in Sacramento, leading Fresno State College to a conference title. [14] Marty also won at the Olympic Trials semi-finals in Long Beach, jumping 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m). [15] He was considered one of the favorites to make the 1932 Olympic team but narrowly missed out; at the final Olympic Trials in Palo Alto he cleared 6 ft 5+5⁄8 (1.97 m) and placed shared fourth as the top three qualified. [16] [17]
In 1933 and 1934 Marty was the world's leading high jumper, setting several new world records. [11] He set his first world record at the West Coast Relays in Fresno on May 13, 1933, clearing 6 ft 8+5⁄8 in (2.04 m) and breaking Harold Osborn's outdoor world record from 1924. [18] [19] Marty's main rivals at his peak were Spitz and Cornelius Johnson; Spitz held the indoor world record of 6 ft 8+1⁄2 in (2.04 m), while Johnson was a consistent competitor with excellent head-to-head records against both Spitz and Marty. [20] [21] [22] Johnson won the 1933 AAU title with a jump of 6 ft 7 in (2.00 m), ahead of Marty, who shared second place with Spitz. [9]
Marty competed indoors for the first time in the winter of 1934; until then, he'd been purely an outdoor jumper. [23] At the New York Athletic Club's indoor games on February 17 he jumped 6 ft 8+3⁄4 in (2.05 m) to set a new indoor world record and defeat previous record holder Spitz, who was second. [24] In the AAU indoor meet later that winter Marty cleared 6 ft 7+1⁄2 in (2.01 m) and shared the championship with Spitz. [25] Marty's 1934 outdoor shape was also record-breaking; on April 7 he jumped 6 ft 9+1⁄2 in (2.07 m) in a dual meet between Fresno State and Sacramento Junior College, but the jump couldn't be recognized as a new record as no AAU officials were present to ratify it. [19] [26] Three weeks later he cleared 6 ft 9+1⁄8 in (2.06 m) in a dual meet against Stanford, his second official outdoor world mark. [19]
Marty was then briefly sidelined by a bruised knee but returned in time for the NCAA championships in Los Angeles, where he tied for first with Spitz at 6 ft 6+3⁄4 in (2.00 m). [22] [27] [28] Marty also tied for first, with Johnson, at the 1934 AAU outdoor meet; the two cleared 6 ft 8+5⁄8 in (2.04 m) for a new meeting record. [9]
A hernia kept Marty out of action for most of 1935, and he was expected to retire; [29] [30] however, after a successful operation he attempted a comeback in 1936. [31] [32] He almost managed to regain his 1934 form, clearing 6 ft 8+3⁄4 in (2.05 m) in May 1936 and even exceeding his world record in training. [7] [30] He was favored to qualify for the United States' 1936 Olympic team, [21] but at the Olympic Trials he only cleared 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m), again placing shared fourth and missing out. [33] [34] The top two - Johnson and Dave Albritton - both sailed over 6 ft 9+3⁄4 in (2.07 m), breaking Marty's world record. [33] [34] The American team of Johnson, Albritton and Delos Thurber went on to sweep the Olympic medals. [33]
Marty used the high jump technique known as the Western roll, pioneered in the early 1910s by George Horine and Edward Beeson. [35] At the time, there were two main jumping styles; Marty (and other west coast jumpers, like Johnson) used the roll, whereas east coast jumpers (such as Spitz) mostly used the Eastern cut-off or other developments of the old scissors jump. [11] [35]
Walter George Marty (August 15, 1910 – April 25, 1995) was an American high jumper. He set both indoor and outdoor world records in his speciality and was national co-champion both indoors and outdoors in his peak year of 1934.
As a student at Fresno High School, Marty jumped 6 ft 4+1⁄4 in (1.93 m) at the 1929 West Coast Relays, setting a United States high school record; [1] [2] only five athletes of any age jumped higher that year. [3] Marty duplicated the mark in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum while winning the 1929 CIF California State Meet. [4] In 1930 Marty was national junior champion [5] and represented the United States in a dual meet against the British Empire; he cleared a personal best 6 ft 5+1⁄4 in (1.96 m) in that meet and won ahead of national senior champion Anton Burg. [6] [7]
In June 1931 Marty cleared a personal best 6 ft 6+3⁄8 in (1.99 m) at the inaugural Kern County Relays in Taft; [8] at the national ( AAU) senior championships three weeks later he jumped 6 ft 4+3⁄8 in (1.94 m) and placed second to Burg, who defended his title. [9] Marty was selected to tour South Africa that fall as one of nine American track and field athletes. [10] [11] In Queenstown he cleared 6 ft 6+3⁄4 in (2.00 m) for a new South African all-comers record; [12] it was the second-best jump in the world that summer, behind George Spitz at 6 ft 7+5⁄16 in (2.01 m). [13]
Marty remained in good form in 1932; he cleared 6 ft 6+1⁄2 in (1.99 m) at the Far Western Conference meet in Sacramento, leading Fresno State College to a conference title. [14] Marty also won at the Olympic Trials semi-finals in Long Beach, jumping 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m). [15] He was considered one of the favorites to make the 1932 Olympic team but narrowly missed out; at the final Olympic Trials in Palo Alto he cleared 6 ft 5+5⁄8 (1.97 m) and placed shared fourth as the top three qualified. [16] [17]
In 1933 and 1934 Marty was the world's leading high jumper, setting several new world records. [11] He set his first world record at the West Coast Relays in Fresno on May 13, 1933, clearing 6 ft 8+5⁄8 in (2.04 m) and breaking Harold Osborn's outdoor world record from 1924. [18] [19] Marty's main rivals at his peak were Spitz and Cornelius Johnson; Spitz held the indoor world record of 6 ft 8+1⁄2 in (2.04 m), while Johnson was a consistent competitor with excellent head-to-head records against both Spitz and Marty. [20] [21] [22] Johnson won the 1933 AAU title with a jump of 6 ft 7 in (2.00 m), ahead of Marty, who shared second place with Spitz. [9]
Marty competed indoors for the first time in the winter of 1934; until then, he'd been purely an outdoor jumper. [23] At the New York Athletic Club's indoor games on February 17 he jumped 6 ft 8+3⁄4 in (2.05 m) to set a new indoor world record and defeat previous record holder Spitz, who was second. [24] In the AAU indoor meet later that winter Marty cleared 6 ft 7+1⁄2 in (2.01 m) and shared the championship with Spitz. [25] Marty's 1934 outdoor shape was also record-breaking; on April 7 he jumped 6 ft 9+1⁄2 in (2.07 m) in a dual meet between Fresno State and Sacramento Junior College, but the jump couldn't be recognized as a new record as no AAU officials were present to ratify it. [19] [26] Three weeks later he cleared 6 ft 9+1⁄8 in (2.06 m) in a dual meet against Stanford, his second official outdoor world mark. [19]
Marty was then briefly sidelined by a bruised knee but returned in time for the NCAA championships in Los Angeles, where he tied for first with Spitz at 6 ft 6+3⁄4 in (2.00 m). [22] [27] [28] Marty also tied for first, with Johnson, at the 1934 AAU outdoor meet; the two cleared 6 ft 8+5⁄8 in (2.04 m) for a new meeting record. [9]
A hernia kept Marty out of action for most of 1935, and he was expected to retire; [29] [30] however, after a successful operation he attempted a comeback in 1936. [31] [32] He almost managed to regain his 1934 form, clearing 6 ft 8+3⁄4 in (2.05 m) in May 1936 and even exceeding his world record in training. [7] [30] He was favored to qualify for the United States' 1936 Olympic team, [21] but at the Olympic Trials he only cleared 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m), again placing shared fourth and missing out. [33] [34] The top two - Johnson and Dave Albritton - both sailed over 6 ft 9+3⁄4 in (2.07 m), breaking Marty's world record. [33] [34] The American team of Johnson, Albritton and Delos Thurber went on to sweep the Olympic medals. [33]
Marty used the high jump technique known as the Western roll, pioneered in the early 1910s by George Horine and Edward Beeson. [35] At the time, there were two main jumping styles; Marty (and other west coast jumpers, like Johnson) used the roll, whereas east coast jumpers (such as Spitz) mostly used the Eastern cut-off or other developments of the old scissors jump. [11] [35]