Question

Suddenly all the tension seemed to ebb out of my body as the truth of what he said hit me. Confidently, I drew a line a full foot in back of the board and proceeded to jump from there. I qualified with almost a foot to spare.

That night I walked over to Luz Long’s room in the Olympic village to thank him. I knew that if it hadn’t been for him I probably wouldn’t be jumping in the finals the following day. We sat in his quarters and talked for two hours—about track and field, ourselves, the world situation, a dozen other things.

When I finally got up to leave, we both knew that a real friendship had been formed. Luz would go out to the field the next day trying to beat me if he could. But I knew that he wanted me to do my best—even if that meant my winning.

Read the extract given below and answer the question that follow.

How did the rivalry of Owens and Long end?

Answer 1

With Owens developing a misconception, the battle in his mind took over his determination to win. Long, who noticed Owens fouling, understood what Owens would be going through. Long’s decision to get acquainted with Owens eased Owens. Owens, after the trials, met Long in his quarters and both spent some quality time together knowing each other, thus leading to a long lasting true friendship.