"The Greatest Olympic Team Ever" came out of two months in South Lake Tahoe and Echo Summit

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - In 1968, the three-year-old City of South Lake Tahoe played an important role in what was to become known as the greatest Olympic games for American track and field athletes of all time.

Those Olympics were held in Mexico City, and many saw records fall and fists rise. Perhaps one of the more memorable Olympics began at the training facility near South Lake Tahoe at the top of Echo Summit. U.S. Men’s Olympic Track & Field Trials were held there from Sept. 6-16, 1968.On June 27, 2014, a historical marker was placed at the Echo Summit training facility (now Adventure Mountain Lodge snow-play area).

This week, athletes who trained at Echo Summit and went on to break records and bring home medals from Mexico City, returned to where it all began. The occasion was a World Athletics Heritage Award Plaque being placed in recognition of the mountain pass’s unique place in the sport’s history.

The World Athletics Heritage Plaque was bestowed upon the site for two categories – Competition and Landmark – celebrating a unique competition and one of the most extraordinary temporary venues in track and field history. The Olympic team that was selected at Echo Summit to represent the USA went on to win 12 gold medals and set six world records at the Mexico City Olympic Games, one of the most dominant performances in Olympic history (as a whole, the US won 107 medals that year).

Bill Toomey, Ron Whitney, John Carlos, and Norm Tate returned to Echo Summit for the October 2 ceremony. Toomey, who lives in Incline Village where his grandson is Incline High's quarterback, won the gold medal in the Decathlon at Mexico City; Whitney competed in the 400M hurdles, ending up in 6th at the Olympics, Tate was a long jumper, and Carlos won bronze in the 200M During the 1968 trials, Carlos stunned the track world when he beat Tommie Smith in the 200-meter finals and surpassed Smith's world record by 0.3 second. Though the record was never ratified because the spike formation on Carlos' shoes wasn't accepted at the time, the race reinforced his status as a world-class sprinter.

"These guys were so dominant - the '68 Olympics and Echo training," said Peter "Duffy" Mahoney. "I don't think it will ever be done again." Mahoney just retired after 33 years with USA Track & Field. He wasn't at those trials and instead was a high school track coach that year. "These gentlemen won 12 gold medals, 5 silver, and 7 bronze."

The trials came to Echo Summit because of the similar elevation of Mexico City - the two have about a 100-foot difference. Sports officials knew high altitude training was needed to be part of their athlete's preparation, and Echo Summit was one of four possible locations, competing against cities Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona.

"South Lake Tahoe had the best PR," said Bob Burns, the host for the ceremony and the author of "The Track in the Forest: The Creation of a Legendary 1968 Olympic Team," the story of the Echo Summit high-altitude training camp. Burns was also responsible for the California State Historical Marker at the site.

Walt Little

South Lake Tahoe also had Walt Little, its recreation director at the time. Little had been a sports writer and was a close friend of U.S. Track and Field’s Jordan. Little’s son also worked at the Echo Summit Ski Area at the time and suggested it to his father as a potential site. The U.S. Olympic Planning Committee chose South Lake Tahoe and Echo Summit. Harrah's Tahoe provided some of the needed financial support as did a five-percent transient occupant tax (TOT) to provide the $250,000 needed to purchase the temporary Tartan track installed at the summit.

Much of what wasn't provided by the tax revenue and donations was provided by Little. He ended up losing his South Lake Tahoe home to foreclosure as he spent the money that should have gone to his mortgage on food and other needs the athletes needed. He arranged for them to have part-time jobs during their two-month stay as well. The athletes were given $2/day per diem.

"It wouldn't have happened in South Lake Tahoe if not for him," said Burns of Little. "He did whatever had to be done, including athletes sleeping on his floor."

"I don't think anyone has ever done as much for sports as Walt," said Carlos. "He made America, America. We need a statue or something for him. I don't want his legacy forgotten."

During the 2014 ceremony, two of his children, Walt Jr and Bill spoke. Bill said, "This is the most beautiful track the world has ever seen with trees in the middle." He spoke of how his mother dug out two trees from the middle and sent them to her son Bob in Vietnam for Christmas. Bill also told the audience that he learned years later that the reason his parents lost their house was because they were feeding the Olympic athletes with their mortgage payments.

Walt's grandaughter Laura Little of Sacramento was at the October 2 ceremony, representing her family. She said her grandfather went on to work for the River News Herald after South Lake Tahoe and was a journalist in the Vietnam War.

"My grandfather lived his life for you guys," Laura told the gathered athletes. "He would have done it all over again. The moment you came here, you were family."

The ashes of Walt and his wife Vivian are placed at the historical marker, a place symbolizing their dedication to the community and the trials.

A world on edge

The country was on edge as the track and field athletes descended upon South Lake Tahoe. There was the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the riots and fires after the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, the Vietnam War, and the civil rights movement.

Beautiful Lake Tahoe and the serene surroundings of the training and trials provided everyone with a break from the tension.

It was the civil rights activism displayed on the podium in Mexico City that put those who had trained at Echo Summit on a world stage for something other than their speed.

Carlos earned bronze in the 200-meter race in Mexico City. During the award ceremony, he removed his shoes and raised his gloved fist high in the air with Tommie Smith, who had placed first. They left a legacy of championing equal rights, an inspiration to activists even today.

Peter Norman of Australia ended up with the silver in that same race, running the fastest time he'd ever recorded. Norman was white but wore the badge with the letters OPHR on it, just as the black athletes did on the podium, "OPHR" was for the Olympic Project for Human Rights. When Norman returned to Australia he was chastised in a country that was very racist at the time. He never received a champion's welcome home or celebration.

Years later a statue was erected at San Jose State showing Smith and Carlos who both attended the school. Both men wanted to see Norman memorialized there with them, but Norman wasn't bothered by it, said Carlos. He said Norman told him he'd put that button on as he believed in human rights. Norman didn't want to be on the statue, but if people wanted to support that Olympic demonstration they could stand in his spot.

The lake, the beauty, the chemistry

"The chemistry at this location was special," said Carlos.

The track and field athletes left Lake Tahoe a close-knit group of friends.

"This was one of the most incredible moments of my life," said Toomey of the trials.

Tate, who still coaches track at the age of 82, said the view of Lake Tahoe while driving from Carson City to the lake is still special to him.

"The first time I was in Tahoe I landed in Reno, rented a car and when I first came around the mountain I saw this beautiful place," added Tate. He left Echo a very confident athlete but ended up 8th in Mexico. He said he was down on himself but was told, "You weren't last, you were 8th best."

"Tahoe changed the trajectory of my life," said Tate. He explained it wasn't just the politics of the time, but the people and friendships they made that were special. "We remember Lake Tahoe."

Tate shared a story that his job during the trials was to run blood samples to Sacramento twice a week. Teammate Jim Kemp ended up in the hospital with previously undiagnosed Sickle cell anemia. Doctors had found that altitude exasperated the disorder and they wanted to make sure nobody else became ill.

"I love these guys," said Tate of the others. "We weren't just friends, we were like brothers."

High altitude training

"The decision to have training at altitude was the best decision ever," said Whitney. After the Olympics, he went on to earn his master's degree, with his thesis being "altitude training for Olympic athletes."

Before that papers in altitudes were done on beagle dogs and not humans. Whitney was the first to write about the effect on world-class athletes.

"We trained in the best conditions," said Whitney. "This place allowed us to achieve our goals."

Some of the other athletes who came out of the Olympic Trials at Echo Summit included Al Oerter, Bob Beaman, Jim Hines, Lee Evans, and Dick Fosbury.

The three things that made Echo special

Bob Burns said:

1. The setting - a 400-meter track that was set in the middle of a forest, showing athletes running and jumping through the trees.
2. The time - 1968 was a difficult year with racial unrest, and the war.
3. The people - athletic brilliance resulting in 12 medals, six world records, and phenomenal athletes.

"This was the greatest Olympic Team ever."

To see the World Heritage plaque, people will have to wait for Adventure Mountain to open this winter. It will be protected from the elements on a wall inside. Read more of the historical marker dedication in 2014 here https://southtahoenow.com/story/06/27/2014/south-lake-tahoe-will-be-us-long-after-we-are-gone-olympi....