Dick Fosbury attended OSU from 1965-1969 and is remembered today as the inventor of the "Fosbury Flop" high jump technique. He won two national championships and an Olympic gold medal while revolutionizing the sport with his innovative approach to jumping higher.
Kelly makes use of the straddle technique used by many high jumpers prior to the full implementation of the Fosbury Flop, created and popularized by Kelly's teammate, Dick Fosbury.
Dick Fosbury, of Medford and Oregon State University, is shown winning the 1968 Olympic High Jump in Mexico City in a new Olympic Games and American record of 7 feet 4 and 1/4th inches. The games were in the summer of 1968 and Fosbury was between his junior and senior year at Oregon State University.
The high jump results are shown on the scoreboard at the 1968 Olympics held in Mexico at the Stadio Olympico. First place was won by Dick Fosbury from Medford, Oregon (Oregon State University alumni) with an American and Olympic Games high jump record of 7 feet 4 1/4 inches.