Jeré Longman

A three-time gold medalist in the 1960s, he was a champion when athletes were expected to be stoic and vulnerability was viewed as a sign of mental weakness.

In 2022, at 100, he set what was believed to be a world record in the 100-meter dash at the Penn Relays in Philadelphia, beating 86- and 92-year-old competitors.

In an unsanctioned mission, the Foreign Service officer helped evacuate about 200 South Vietnamese citizens from Saigon days before the city fell in 1975.

His accomplishment in 1975 inspired thousands of disabled athletes to participate in races around the world.

The Times called him “the world’s most highly regarded forensic criminologist,” but later in his career he faced accusations that he had hidden and fabricated evidence.

With her bright leotards and soothing, welcoming tone, she helped to demystify a discipline that many Americans in the 1970s viewed as a counterculture practice.

In 1964, he was one of the first three African Americans to compete in wrestling at the Games. He went on to have a distinguished coaching career.

She revolutionized women’s sprinting with her speed and flamboyant fashion sense, and was a three-time gold medalist at the 1988 Summer Olympics.

A runner, coach and best-selling author, he created the widely embraced run-walk-run method, which helped make running more accessible to the public.