Carl Ludwig "Luz" Long (27 April 1913 – 14 July 1943) was a German Olympic

long jump The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a gr ...

er who won the

silver medal A silver medal, in sports and other similar areas involving competition, is a medal made of, or plated with, silver awarded to the second-place finisher, or runner-up, of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, ...

in the event at the

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XI Olympiad () and officially branded as Berlin 1936, were an international multi-sport event held from 1 to 16 August 1936 in Berlin, then capital of Nazi Germany. Berlin won the bid to ...

in Berlin and had a friendship with

Jesse Owens James Cleveland "Jesse" Owens (September 12, 1913 – March 31, 1980) was an American track and field athlete who made history at the Athletics at the 1936 Summer Olympics, 1936 Olympic Games by becoming the first person to win four gold meda ...

, who won the

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have b ...

in that event. Luz Long won the German long jump championship six times: in 1933, 1934, 1936, 1937, 1938, and 1939. Long was killed while serving in the

German Army The German Army (, 'army') is the land component of the armed forces of Federal Republic of Germany, Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German together with the German Navy, ''Marine'' (G ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Early life

Long was born in Leipzig on 27 April 1913. He studied law at the

University of Leipzig Leipzig University (), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 December 1409 by Frederick I, Electo ...

, where in 1936 he joined the ''Leipziger Sport Club''.Luz-Long-Ufer – Dr. Luz Long (1913–1944). Mehrmaliger Deutscher Meister und Europarekordinhber bei den Olympischen Spielen 1936 in Berlin. Im zweiten Weltkrieg in Italien gefallen. After graduating, he practiced as a lawyer in Hamburg while continuing his interest in sport.

1936 Olympic Games

The 21-year-old, 1.84-metre-tall (6'½") Long had finished third in the 1934 European Championships in Athletics with 7.25 metres (23'9½"). By the summer of 1936, Long held the European record in the long jump and was eager to compete for the first time against Jesse Owens, the American world-record holder. The

on 4 August was Long's first event against Owens, and Long met his expectations by setting an

Olympic record Olympic records are the best performances in a specific event in that event's history in either the Summer Olympic Games or the Winter Olympic Games. Summer Olympics * Archery at the Summer Olympics, Archery (List of Olympic records in archery, li ...

during the preliminary round. In contrast, Owens fouled on his first two jumps. Knowing that he needed to reach at least 7.15 metres (about 23 feet 5½ inches) on his third jump in order to advance to the finals in the afternoon, Owens sat on the field, dejected. In the 1966 documentary ''Jesse Owens Returns to Berlin'', Owens relates a story that Long came over to offer advice before Owens's third jump. According to the story, Long said that Owens should jump from a few inches before the takeoff board. This would reduce the measured distance but avoid the risk of another fault; the theory was that Owens would still clear the required distance even with the handicap of jumping early. However, this conversation is apocryphal;

Grantland Rice Henry Grantland Rice (November 1, 1880 – July 13, 1954) was an American sportswriter and poet known as the "Dean of American Sports Writers". He coined the famous phrase that it was not important whether you “won or lost, but how you playe ...

was watching Owens the entirety of the qualifying round and did not see him speak to Long. Tom Ecker relates that he asked Owens about the story in 1965 and Owens admitted that it was not true, but just a good story. On his third qualifying jump, Owens was calm and jumped with at least four inches (10 centimeters) to spare, easily qualifying for the finals. In the finals competition later that day, the jumpers exceeded the old Olympic record five times. Owens went on to become Olympic champion in the long jump with 8.06 metres (26'5¼") while besting Long's own record of 7.87 metres (25'9¾"). Long won the

for second place and was the first to congratulate Owens: they posed together for photos and walked arm-in-arm to the dressing room. Owens said, "It took a lot of courage for him to befriend me in front of

Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

... I would melt down all the medals and cups I have and they wouldn't be a plating on the twenty-four

karat The fineness of a precious metal object (coin, bar, jewelry, etc.) represents the weight of ''fine metal'' therein, in proportion to the total weight which includes alloying base metals and any impurities. Alloy metals are added to increase hardn ...

friendship that I felt for Luz Long at that moment". Long's competition with Owens is recorded in

Leni Riefenstahl Helene Bertha Amalie "Leni" Riefenstahl (; 22 August 1902 – 8 September 2003) was a German film director, Film producer, producer, screenwriter, Film editing, editor, photographer, and actress. She is considered one of the most controversial ...

's documentary '' Olympia – Fest der Völker''. Two days later, Long finished 10th in the

triple jump The triple jump, sometimes referred to as the hop, step and jump or the hop, skip and jump, is a track and field event, similar to long jump. As a group, the two events are referred to as the "horizontal jumps". The competitor runs down the tr ...

. He went on to win the British

AAA Championships The AAA Championships was an annual track and field competition organised by the Amateur Athletic Association of England. It was the foremost domestic athletics event in the United Kingdom during its lifetime, despite the existence of the offi ...

title in the long jump event at the

1937 AAA Championships The 1937 AAA Championships was the 1937 edition of the annual outdoor track and field competition organised by the Amateur Athletic Association (AAA). It was held from 16 to 17 July 1937 at White City Stadium in London, England. The Championsh ...

and finish third in the 1938 European Championships in Athletics long jump with 7.56 metres (24'9½").

World War II

Long served in the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

during World War II, having the rank of ''

Obergefreiter Obergefreiter (''abbr.'' OGefr.) is an enlisted rank of the German and Swiss militaries which dates from the 19th century. In today's ''Bundeswehr'', every ''Gefreiter'' is normally promoted ''Obergefreiter'' after six months. The NATO-Code is ...

''. During the

Allied invasion of Sicily The Allied invasion of Sicily, also known as the Battle of Sicily and Operation Husky, was a major campaign of World War II in which the Allies of World War II, Allied forces invaded the island of Sicily in July 1943 and took it from the Axis p ...

in Italy, Long was wounded on 10 July 1943, in the battle for the Biscari-

Santo Pietro Santo Pietro is a small village (''frazione'') of the Comune of Caltagirone, Sicily, Italy, with a population of c. 90 people. History The settlement was founded as ''Mussolinia di Sicilia'', one of several settlements across Italy founded by t ...

airfield, and died four days later in a British military hospital. He was buried in the war cemetery of Motta Sant'Anastasia in Sicily. There is an

urban myth Urban legend (sometimes modern legend, urban myth, or simply legend) is a genre of folklore concerning stories about an unusual (usually scary) or humorous event that many people believe to be true but largely are not. These legends can be e ...

that Long sent a letter to Owens from the battlefield, requesting that Owens visit Long's son if Long were to die. Long is supposed to have asked Owens to explain to the boy how life was before people were divided by the war. Such a letter has never been seen by the families of Owens or Long, nor would it be likely that Long could send a letter to the United States while in the German military. Additionally, the letter is often reported as having come from North Africa, a theatre that Long did not serve in. After the war, Owens travelled to Germany to meet Luz' son, Kai-Heinrich Long (1941-2021), who was seen with Owens in the 1966 documentary ''Jesse Owens Returns To Berlin'', where they conversed in the Berlin Olympic Stadium.

Memorials

Roads near sports facilities in Long's home town of Leipzig, and in the Munich Olympia Park of 1972, are named after him. His medal, photos, and documents were donated to the Sportmuseum Leipzig.

In popular culture

*In the film '' The Jesse Owens Story'' (1984), he is portrayed by Kai Wulff. *In the film '' Race'' (2016), he is played by David Kross.

References

External links

* * *
Photo of Long and Owens
{{DEFAULTSORT:Long, Luz 1913 births 1943 deaths Athletes from Leipzig Athletes (track and field) at the 1936 Summer Olympics European Athletics Championships medalists German Army personnel killed in World War II German Army soldiers of World War II German male long jumpers Leipzig University alumni Medalists at the 1936 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes for Germany Olympic silver medalists for Germany Olympic silver medalists in athletics (track and field) Military personnel from Leipzig 20th-century German sportsmen