The story of Jesse
Owens is so remarkable.
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It eventually
created this museum
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honoring him in the
Alabama town of Multan.
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It's called the
Jesse Owens Memorial Park.
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Alabama
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is where this
Olympic athlete grew up.
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This birth home replica
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pictures what
it was like for him
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in a small town
in the early 1900s.
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He was the son of sharecroppers.
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This African American kid
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didn't seem to
have much of a future.
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It was a time
and place in the US,
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with a culture of
slavery still seem to linger.
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The niche of blacks
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was still the
bottom of the barrel.
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At the age of seven,
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James was expected to pick
100 pounds of cotton a day.
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Those long days of hard work
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for a little boy under
the blazing Alabama sun
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were required just
to keep the family fed.
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What's more?
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James suffered from
chronic bronchial congestion.
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He also had to fight
several bouts of pneumonia.
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But his Christian
family kept believing
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that God had a
way to a better place.
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When the lad turned nine,
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they managed to move
north to Cleveland, Ohio.
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Rumor had that black
people had more opportunities
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in the industrial north.
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The family did do a bit better,
and James started school.
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When a teacher
asked him his name.
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He answered J.C.,
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that's what he
was called at home.
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The teacher
misunderstood his southern drawl
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and heard Jesse,
the name would stick.
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Now he was Jesse Owens.
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Far across the
Atlantic Ocean in Germany,
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a lad named Ludwig
Luz Long was growing up.
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Born in Leipzig in 1913,
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this tall blue-eyed blonde kid
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seemed to have
a promising future
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in that prosperous city.
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He did well in school,
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and his parents could
provide for all his needs.
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In 1920, when Luz
was in grade school,
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Adolf Hitler was
already in charge of propaganda
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for the German Workers' Party.
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He delivered many
antisemitic tirades,
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blaming the Jews for
all his nation's problems.
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Hitler soon got in control,
turned it into the Nazi Party,
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and began waving
his swastika flag.
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The superiority of
the white Aryan race
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would become
part of its platform.
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Luz Long and his family
lived in this volatile world,
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but Hitler would see them
as part of the right race.
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Back over in Cleveland,
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Jesse Owens felt inspired
by his Christian family.
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He worked hard to do well,
in a race regarded as inferior.
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African Americans
had to struggle harder
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to get anywhere.
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But in high school,
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Jesse managed to
excel in a different race,
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a foot race or running race.
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He would become a remarkably
speedy teenager on the track.
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Jesse would tie
National High School records
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in the 100 and 220-yard dashes.
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He would also rise to
the top in the long jump
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called the broad jump back then.
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This lad was accepted
to Ohio State University.
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He took this sports
program up a few notches,
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easily becoming the
swiftest on the track.
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In 1935, as a sophomore,
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he would participate
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in a high-profile college event,
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the big 10 championships
in track and field.
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Jesse ran the
100-yard dash in 9.4 seconds,
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tying the world record.
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In the 220-yard dash,
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he raised under
the world record,
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clocking 20.3 seconds.
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And then he created a phenomenon
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in is one long jump.
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He soared for 26 feet
eight and a quarter inches.
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That was a world record,
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a record that
would last for 25 years.
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Over in Germany,
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Luz Long joined the
University of Leipzig.
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He studied law there
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and also became part of
the Leipziger Sport Club.
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After graduating,
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he practiced as a
lawyer in Hamburg but
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continued his keen
interest in sports.
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Adolf Hitler was
now Germany's dictator.
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The Nazi Party
seemed to be controlling
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every aspect of life.
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But Lud tried to
focus on his personal goals.
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At the age of 23,
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he would participate in
the European Championships
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in athletics.
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At this 1936 event
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Luz finished
third in the long jump,
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leaping for 7.25 meters.
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By the summer of 1936,
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he held the European
record in the long jump.
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Now he was
looking at the Olympics.
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The Buckeye Bullet
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was heading in
that direction as well.
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In his junior
year at Ohio State,
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Jesse Owens
competed in 42 events
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and won them all.
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He excelled at the
big 10 championships,
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and then caught America's eye
for good at the Olympic trials.
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This was an
exceptional all-around athlete.
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Things were rather
complicated, however,
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as Jesse Owens boarded his ship
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for Europe and
the Berlin Olympics.
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Many people in America
wanted to boycott these games.
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The Nazi regime over there
00:07:18.03\00:07:19.57
was already
persecuting and excluding Jews.
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The brown shirts
only wanted athletes
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who would
demonstrate the superiority
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of the Aryan race.
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And people knew that
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Hitler would use this
big event as Nazi propaganda.
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Others, however,
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asserted that the Olympic
Games belong to the athletes,
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not the politicians.
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Americans
excelling in these sports
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should have the
chance to shine they said,
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regardless of the host country.
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The debate was quite intense
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as Jesse sailed
across the Atlantic,
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but he was
pondering a different issue.
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It's something suggested here
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in the welcome center
house at this memorial park.
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Jesse was now a married
man and the father of a child.
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These personal
items you can see here,
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were donated by his wife Ruth.
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They give us
glimpses of his life.
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Jesse was getting
a lot of publicity.
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And he began wondering
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if all that was crowding out
the spiritual side of his life.
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I had an almost
overwhelming input
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to drop down on my
knees and thank God
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for letting this
opportunity come to me,
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and to ask his help
to make the most of it.
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All of this came over Jesse,
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as the skyline of New York
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disappeared
beneath the ocean waves.
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This was America's
most promising athlete,
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the son of a sharecropper,
the grandson of slaves,
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was now the man
everyone was talking about.
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But he wanted to focus on
someone bigger than himself.
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He'd been brought up
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on the teachings
of Jesus in His Word.
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And so now that he was climbing
the highest of mountains,
00:09:06.17\00:09:10.31
he wanted God to
meet him at the summit.
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Well to Jesse Owens
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it did seem that
God was there for him
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at the Berlin Olympic Games.
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Yes, even with
the swastika flags
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flying all around,
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even with Nazi troops parading,
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even with Adolf Hitler,
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high up in the
stands presiding over
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what he was sure
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would be proof of
his racist superiority.
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Surely, the Aryan's
would get the gold, not quite.
00:09:36.77\00:09:41.91
Jesse Owens would
smash the Nazi agenda,
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almost single-handedly.
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This 177-centimeter,
75 kilo African American
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took off fast in
the 100-meter dash.
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He sped over the
Berlin stadium track
00:10:01.36\00:10:03.87
in 10.2 seconds,
00:10:03.90\00:10:05.83
winning the gold medal
00:10:05.87\00:10:07.90
that made him the
fastest man on earth.
00:10:07.94\00:10:12.01
Hitler didn't like that at all.
00:10:12.04\00:10:14.18
But Jesse was
just getting started.
00:10:14.21\00:10:16.51
Then came the 200-meter dash,
00:10:19.71\00:10:22.12
that man who had to
pick cotton all day long,
00:10:22.15\00:10:25.79
now seem to speed effortlessly
passing everyone else.
00:10:25.82\00:10:30.06
Jesse won a second gold medal,
00:10:30.09\00:10:32.76
setting an Olympic record
00:10:32.79\00:10:34.66
in the 200-meter
dash at 20.7 seconds.
00:10:34.70\00:10:38.87
Then there was the 4
x 100-meter relay race.
00:10:38.90\00:10:41.70
Owens ran the leadoff,
00:10:41.74\00:10:43.77
his team would win by 15 meters,
00:10:43.81\00:10:47.41
setting a world
record time of 39.8 seconds,
00:10:47.44\00:10:51.55
that would last
for 20 years more gold.
00:10:51.58\00:10:55.62
The Nazis had been
portraying African Americans
00:10:55.65\00:10:58.85
as inferior for some time.
00:10:58.89\00:11:01.26
Before the Olympics,
00:11:01.29\00:11:02.62
they loudly
ridiculed the United States
00:11:02.66\00:11:05.56
for relying on what they
called Black Auxiliaries.
00:11:05.59\00:11:09.06
One German official at the games
00:11:09.10\00:11:10.87
complained about the people
00:11:10.90\00:11:12.43
Americans were letting
represent their country,
00:11:12.47\00:11:15.37
those he called
non-humans like Owens
00:11:15.40\00:11:18.77
and other negro athletes,
00:11:18.81\00:11:21.04
but Jesse felt
something quite different
00:11:21.08\00:11:22.91
when he walked
the streets of Berlin.
00:11:22.94\00:11:25.21
People kept
asking for his autograph,
00:11:25.25\00:11:27.72
they wanted to stand
beside him and take a picture,
00:11:27.75\00:11:30.65
and the 110,000
00:11:30.69\00:11:32.39
who packed that
glittering Olympic stadium
00:11:32.42\00:11:35.09
didn't boo Jesse
when he won his races.
00:11:35.12\00:11:37.79
They cheered him on with gusto.
00:11:37.83\00:11:40.63
And then came
00:11:40.66\00:11:42.16
the most
remarkable of rendezvous.
00:11:42.20\00:11:45.07
It was something
00:11:45.10\00:11:46.43
Hitler wouldn't
have dreamed off.
00:11:46.47\00:11:47.80
The event, the long jump.
00:11:51.91\00:11:54.54
Jesse was
competing there as well.
00:11:54.58\00:11:57.28
That is reflected
here at the long jump pit
00:11:57.31\00:12:00.45
at the Jesse
Owens Memorial Park.
00:12:00.48\00:12:03.08
It gives us a clear picture
of the remarkable distance
00:12:03.12\00:12:06.69
he would cover many years ago.
00:12:06.72\00:12:08.96
The German champion Luz
Long was competing as well.
00:12:15.26\00:12:19.70
Yes, the lawyer from Leipzig
still very much an athlete
00:12:19.73\00:12:23.67
they'd never met.
00:12:23.71\00:12:25.17
They were just warming
up beside that long runway
00:12:25.21\00:12:27.74
toward the leap over the sand,
00:12:27.78\00:12:30.05
Jesse and Luz
00:12:30.08\00:12:31.48
were the top
competitors in this event.
00:12:31.51\00:12:35.92
But strangely enough,
in the qualifying rounds,
00:12:35.95\00:12:38.69
Jesse was struggling.
00:12:38.72\00:12:40.39
He almost failed out.
00:12:40.42\00:12:42.46
On his first two attempts,
00:12:42.49\00:12:44.19
He stood beyond the
line on the takeoff board.
00:12:44.23\00:12:47.20
He hadn't made the
required minimum distance.
00:12:47.23\00:12:50.87
And now Jesse had
just one more attempt left.
00:12:50.90\00:12:54.47
Few people can understand
00:12:54.50\00:12:56.34
what kind of pressure
must weigh down on an athlete
00:12:56.37\00:12:59.64
in the Olympics.
00:12:59.67\00:13:01.01
But one man did, Luz Long.
00:13:05.71\00:13:08.62
This tall blonde German
with Hitler's eyes on him
00:13:08.65\00:13:12.12
was Jesse's chief
competitor for gold.
00:13:12.15\00:13:15.39
And this is what
Jesse would remember
00:13:15.42\00:13:17.63
the rest of his life.
00:13:17.66\00:13:20.26
Suddenly, I felt a hand
on my shoulder, Jesse Owens.
00:13:20.30\00:13:25.77
It wasn't the loudspeaker
calling my name a final time.
00:13:25.80\00:13:29.87
It was a man
standing right next to me.
00:13:29.90\00:13:32.71
As Jesse looked over
into Luz Long's face,
00:13:32.74\00:13:35.51
he knew he was
supposed to be staring down
00:13:35.54\00:13:37.78
his arch-enemy,
00:13:37.81\00:13:39.15
one of the high
hopes of the Nazis.
00:13:39.18\00:13:41.78
But as Jesse recalled...
00:13:41.82\00:13:44.12
The way his hand
rested on my shoulder,
00:13:44.15\00:13:46.99
the vibrations I felt as
he looked at me and smiled,
00:13:47.02\00:13:50.86
made me know somehow,
that far from being my enemy,
00:13:50.89\00:13:55.36
he was my friend.
00:13:55.40\00:13:58.23
Luz introduced himself
00:13:58.27\00:13:59.73
and sit in
slightly broken English.
00:13:59.77\00:14:02.20
"I think I know what's wrong.
00:14:02.24\00:14:04.24
You give
everything when you jump.
00:14:04.27\00:14:06.68
I the same.
00:14:06.71\00:14:08.21
You cannot do halfway,
00:14:08.24\00:14:10.35
but you're afraid
you will fail again.
00:14:10.38\00:14:13.68
" Jessie nodded.
00:14:13.72\00:14:15.18
"Hey, that's right."
00:14:15.22\00:14:17.49
"Well, I have an
answer," Luz said.
00:14:17.52\00:14:20.62
"Same thing happened to
me last year in Cologne."
00:14:20.66\00:14:24.29
Now there were just seconds left
00:14:24.33\00:14:25.76
before Jessie had
to qualify or default.
00:14:25.79\00:14:29.10
Luz quickly told him to
just remeasure his steps
00:14:29.13\00:14:33.03
and jump from
15 centimeters back
00:14:33.07\00:14:35.60
of the takeoff board.
00:14:35.64\00:14:37.44
That way he could give 100%
00:14:37.47\00:14:40.04
and still not be
afraid of failing out.
00:14:40.08\00:14:42.94
After all,
00:14:42.98\00:14:44.31
Jesse could easily make
00:14:44.35\00:14:45.68
the 7.15-meter
qualifying minimum.
00:14:45.71\00:14:51.25
Luz then laid down his towel
00:14:51.29\00:14:53.59
at exactly the place
where Jesse could safely jump.
00:14:53.62\00:14:57.79
It was simple as
Jesse would recall.
00:14:57.83\00:15:01.36
I could feel a
surge of confident energy
00:15:01.40\00:15:04.23
surging back into my
body for that brief second,
00:15:04.27\00:15:08.24
before beginning my run.
00:15:08.27\00:15:10.74
I went as fast as I ever had
00:15:10.77\00:15:13.44
took off and felt
almost like I was flying.
00:15:13.48\00:15:17.05
When Jesse Owens landed,
00:15:23.02\00:15:24.79
he had set
another Olympic record
00:15:24.82\00:15:27.42
over eight
meters in the long jump,
00:15:27.46\00:15:30.13
and that was
leaping some 15 centimeters
00:15:30.16\00:15:33.33
in front of the takeoff board.
00:15:33.36\00:15:35.40
He had made the
finals to say the least.
00:15:35.43\00:15:38.57
And now all that
had just happened
00:15:38.60\00:15:41.04
began to strike Jesse Owens.
00:15:41.07\00:15:43.54
Luz Long had made
quite a courageous gesture.
00:15:43.57\00:15:49.64
The tall blue-eyed blonde German
00:15:49.68\00:15:52.15
had befriended a black rival
00:15:52.18\00:15:54.22
in front of Hitler
and all his Nazi troops.
00:15:54.25\00:15:57.85
Jesse could hardly
think of how to thank him,
00:15:57.89\00:16:00.36
but he offered his friendship
00:16:00.39\00:16:02.09
and the two got
together that night
00:16:02.12\00:16:03.73
over coffee in
the Olympic Village.
00:16:03.76\00:16:06.09
Jesse and Luz
talked on into the night.
00:16:06.13\00:16:08.70
They're up much later
00:16:08.73\00:16:10.07
than athletes
were supposed to be.
00:16:10.10\00:16:12.13
But these two men
00:16:12.17\00:16:13.67
from two very different worlds
00:16:13.70\00:16:15.87
had made a
remarkable Olympic rendezvous.
00:16:15.90\00:16:19.31
The long-term finals did
prove to be quite intense.
00:16:26.45\00:16:30.09
Jumpers would exceed
00:16:30.12\00:16:31.45
the old Olympic
record five times.
00:16:31.49\00:16:34.49
Luz Long had set his
own record of 7.87 meters.
00:16:34.52\00:16:38.73
But in the end,
00:16:38.76\00:16:40.10
Owens managed to leap
over that to 8.06 meters
00:16:40.13\00:16:44.07
and the gold medal.
00:16:44.10\00:16:45.43
Luz was left with the silver,
00:16:45.47\00:16:47.94
but he was the first
to congratulate Owens,
00:16:47.97\00:16:50.81
the two men posed
together for photos,
00:16:50.84\00:16:53.61
and they walked arm in arm
00:16:53.64\00:16:55.24
out of that huge
stadium into the dressing room.
00:16:55.28\00:16:58.31
As it turned out,
00:17:01.75\00:17:03.15
Jesse Owens knew
how to greatly value
00:17:03.18\00:17:05.45
Luz generous gesture.
00:17:05.49\00:17:07.56
He would make this statement.
00:17:07.59\00:17:09.99
You can melt down all
the medals and cups I have.
00:17:10.03\00:17:13.80
And they wouldn't be a plating
on the 24-karat friendship
00:17:13.83\00:17:18.07
that I felt for Luz
Long at that moment.
00:17:18.10\00:17:21.60
This gold medal tree here
at the park reflects that.
00:17:26.17\00:17:30.65
It's a pretty
simple, ordinary oak.
00:17:30.68\00:17:33.55
But back at the 1936 Olympics,
00:17:33.58\00:17:36.28
four seedling oaks,
00:17:36.32\00:17:37.65
representing
his four gold medals
00:17:37.69\00:17:40.06
were presented to Jesse Owens
as a gift of the German people.
00:17:40.09\00:17:44.39
Jesse knew how to
value those gifts.
00:17:44.43\00:17:47.20
He planted one at
his mother's house
00:17:47.23\00:17:48.86
in Cleveland,
00:17:48.90\00:17:50.23
one at Ohio State University,
00:17:50.27\00:17:53.03
and one at the high
school where he practiced track.
00:17:53.07\00:17:56.44
The fourth tree died
before Jesse could plant it,
00:17:56.47\00:18:00.21
but the Owens Family
Guide park officials here
00:18:00.24\00:18:03.21
this oak to plant
00:18:03.24\00:18:04.98
as a symbol of that fourth gift.
00:18:05.01\00:18:07.05
When World War II broke out,
00:18:16.59\00:18:18.63
Luz had to join the German army.
00:18:18.66\00:18:21.20
He was severely wounded
00:18:21.23\00:18:22.76
during the Allied
invasion of Sicily,
00:18:22.80\00:18:25.47
taken captive,
00:18:25.50\00:18:26.87
he would die in a
British military hospital
00:18:26.90\00:18:29.54
on July 13, 1943.
00:18:29.57\00:18:33.01
But after the war,
00:18:33.04\00:18:34.68
Jesse Owens
managed to keep in touch
00:18:34.71\00:18:36.88
with Luz's family.
00:18:36.91\00:18:38.71
He would tell the man's son,
00:18:38.75\00:18:40.52
how courageous his
father had been in the Olympics,
00:18:40.55\00:18:43.69
how much he respected the man.
00:18:43.72\00:18:46.19
He would always make
the Long family feel proud.
00:18:46.22\00:18:50.23
You know,
00:18:50.26\00:18:51.59
I believe there's a clear reason
00:18:51.63\00:18:53.29
why Jesse Owens could honor
that Olympic gesture so highly.
00:18:53.33\00:18:57.93
Why he would in
fact make it resonate
00:18:57.97\00:19:00.47
down through the years.
00:19:00.50\00:19:02.74
And that is the
faith he grew up with.
00:19:02.77\00:19:05.27
The God he wanted to meet
on that mountaintop in Berlin.
00:19:05.31\00:19:09.31
Jesse wanted to share his faith
00:19:09.34\00:19:11.11
when he met with Luz that
night at the Olympic Village.
00:19:11.15\00:19:14.55
He asked him
about his background,
00:19:14.58\00:19:16.48
his religion.
00:19:16.52\00:19:17.89
Luz kind of shrugged.
00:19:17.92\00:19:19.79
His family had
been rather secular.
00:19:19.82\00:19:22.39
And Hitler's Germany
was diminishing Christianity
00:19:22.42\00:19:25.79
everywhere it could.
00:19:25.83\00:19:27.63
But Jesse wanted to
affirm this man anyway.
00:19:27.66\00:19:30.60
Yes, he was German.
00:19:30.63\00:19:32.63
Yes, he might even have
to fight in Hitler's army.
00:19:32.67\00:19:36.37
But as Jesse put it...
00:19:36.40\00:19:38.31
I felt that beneath
that, he was my brother.
00:19:38.34\00:19:42.94
I believed in Luz Long.
00:19:42.98\00:19:47.25
And that was
because this German athlete
00:19:47.28\00:19:49.85
had expressed something
00:19:49.88\00:19:51.22
that shines out
of the New Testament,
00:19:51.25\00:19:53.62
the New Testament
Jesse Owens grew up with.
00:19:53.66\00:19:56.96
The Apostle Paul had made
00:19:56.99\00:19:58.33
some remarkable
gestures in this world,
00:19:58.36\00:20:01.06
a world of big racial
and religious boundaries.
00:20:01.10\00:20:05.17
He saw Jesus Christ
00:20:05.20\00:20:07.04
as the man who
makes the greatest
00:20:07.07\00:20:09.17
and the widest of connections.
00:20:09.20\00:20:11.64
Here's how he put it
in Galatians 3:27 and 28.
00:20:11.67\00:20:18.21
"For all who are
baptized into Christ,
00:20:18.25\00:20:20.72
have clothed
yourself with Christ.
00:20:20.75\00:20:23.12
There is
neither Jew nor Gentile,
00:20:23.15\00:20:25.32
neither slave nor free,
nor is there male and female,
00:20:25.35\00:20:29.69
for you are all
one in Christ Jesus."
00:20:29.72\00:20:32.43
But the Apostle
Paul proclaimed something
00:20:35.46\00:20:37.70
all over the
Mediterranean world.
00:20:37.73\00:20:40.67
He said that Jesus
Christ changed everything.
00:20:40.70\00:20:43.67
He made it possible for everyone
00:20:43.71\00:20:45.64
to be accepted by faith,
as a beloved child of God.
00:20:45.67\00:20:50.85
He gave everyone the
chance to rise up in God's arms
00:20:50.88\00:20:55.32
to heaven itself.
00:20:55.35\00:20:57.09
That's what it meant
to be clothed with Christ.
00:20:57.12\00:21:00.49
His righteousness
could envelop you,
00:21:00.52\00:21:02.76
give you a new identity,
00:21:02.79\00:21:05.06
His grace could become
the clothing that defines you.
00:21:05.09\00:21:09.76
And so in Christ,
there was no Jew, no Gentile,
00:21:09.80\00:21:14.60
no slave, no free person,
00:21:14.64\00:21:17.61
no male, no
female, no black, no white.
00:21:17.64\00:21:23.55
All those differences in status
that so many struggled with,
00:21:23.58\00:21:27.55
so many fought about,
just weren't important.
00:21:27.58\00:21:31.95
It was a person's spiritual life
00:21:31.99\00:21:35.29
that gave them a
significant place
00:21:35.32\00:21:37.43
in this world.
00:21:37.46\00:21:39.39
One of Christ's
most famous parables
00:21:39.43\00:21:42.20
is the Good Samaritan.
00:21:42.23\00:21:44.27
Well, the
Samaritans were the people
00:21:44.30\00:21:46.13
his listeners despise the most.
00:21:46.17\00:21:49.50
In Jerusalem, they
were way on the outside.
00:21:49.54\00:21:53.88
Priests and scribes
were way on the inside.
00:21:53.91\00:21:57.58
But in this story,
00:21:57.61\00:21:59.31
Jesus makes the
Samaritan the hero
00:21:59.35\00:22:02.55
who rescues a wounded Jew.
00:22:02.58\00:22:05.35
Christ last words were,
00:22:05.39\00:22:07.86
"Go and make
disciples of all nations."
00:22:07.89\00:22:11.16
Yes, he wanted grace
circling around the world.
00:22:15.03\00:22:19.10
Jesse Owens understood that.
00:22:19.13\00:22:21.40
It's not unlike this replica
of the 1936 Olympic torch
00:22:21.44\00:22:26.41
still burning bright.
00:22:26.44\00:22:28.71
These Olympic
torches circle the world.
00:22:28.74\00:22:32.21
Well, Jesse wanted
that grace circling too.
00:22:32.25\00:22:36.32
He wanted to make sure
his rendezvous with God
00:22:36.35\00:22:39.39
would burn bright,
00:22:39.42\00:22:41.06
even while rising
to the mountaintop
00:22:41.09\00:22:43.66
as the world's greatest athlete.
00:22:43.69\00:22:46.43
That's why he could affirm
Luz Long's gesture so well.
00:22:46.46\00:22:51.07
Luz reached
across a racial boundary.
00:22:51.10\00:22:54.70
That's what Christ did
in the widest possible way.
00:22:54.74\00:22:59.27
Jesus broke down all barriers.
00:22:59.31\00:23:02.14
He reaches out to every culture,
00:23:02.18\00:23:04.88
He can penetrate
every human heart,
00:23:04.91\00:23:08.12
He holds up the torch of grace.
00:23:08.15\00:23:12.42
I think people should remember
Jesse Owens for many things.
00:23:12.45\00:23:16.22
First of all,
00:23:16.26\00:23:17.89
the abilities that he developed
00:23:17.93\00:23:22.36
and used all through his life
00:23:22.40\00:23:24.37
and treat the way
he treated others,
00:23:24.40\00:23:26.07
he was a great humanitarian,
00:23:26.10\00:23:29.44
he did well in college,
00:23:29.47\00:23:31.67
he broke out all
kinds of track records,
00:23:31.71\00:23:34.04
he is an inspiration
00:23:34.08\00:23:36.31
to all youth and
adults and older people.
00:23:36.34\00:23:40.12
Even our president of
the United States told
00:23:40.15\00:23:41.98
he's one of the greatest
athletes in the century.
00:23:42.02\00:23:46.25
And you can go to
Russia or England or Australia,
00:23:46.29\00:23:51.09
and they know who
Jesse Owens, a lot of people.
00:23:51.13\00:23:54.00
And that's an inspiration
00:23:54.03\00:23:55.36
to know that he could do that
00:23:55.40\00:23:58.13
coming from how
he is raised here.
00:23:58.17\00:24:00.44
He grew up as a
sharecropper son,
00:24:00.47\00:24:02.70
grandson of a slave,
00:24:02.74\00:24:05.17
and he just had a
lot of determination
00:24:05.21\00:24:08.21
and inner strength about him
00:24:08.24\00:24:10.65
that he could accomplish
the worldwide recognition
00:24:10.68\00:24:14.78
to his
humanitarian acts of kindness
00:24:14.82\00:24:18.42
and generosity and
athletic achievements.
00:24:18.45\00:24:22.82
And that's an
inspiration to know that
00:24:22.86\00:24:24.79
he made that kind
of impact worldwide.
00:24:24.83\00:24:28.90
This famous Jesse Owens statue
00:24:28.93\00:24:31.47
embodies this man
breaking through barriers.
00:24:31.50\00:24:34.50
He had to do that
00:24:34.54\00:24:35.87
even after his
Olympic achievements.
00:24:35.90\00:24:38.67
He got a ticker-tape
parade in New York City
00:24:38.71\00:24:41.41
but then he couldn't
take the regular elevator
00:24:41.44\00:24:44.15
just for white people
00:24:44.18\00:24:45.78
to his reception in his honor
at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel.
00:24:45.81\00:24:50.62
He had to ride
the freight elevator.
00:24:50.65\00:24:54.29
Endorsements
didn't come his way much.
00:24:54.32\00:24:57.09
Jesse would have to make
a living at special events,
00:24:57.13\00:25:00.10
running races
against dogs and horses.
00:25:00.13\00:25:03.26
It wasn't until the 1950s
00:25:03.30\00:25:05.73
that he finally
managed financial security
00:25:05.77\00:25:09.20
becoming a valued public speaker
00:25:09.24\00:25:11.24
for corporations.
00:25:11.27\00:25:12.97
In time, he would
win the Medal of Freedom,
00:25:13.01\00:25:16.54
America's
highest civilian honor.
00:25:16.58\00:25:19.25
But what Jesse
Owen did always have
00:25:19.28\00:25:22.38
was this New
Testament spotlight.
00:25:22.42\00:25:24.85
The sense of a God who
values individuals so much
00:25:24.89\00:25:29.32
that it was
willing to give up his life
00:25:29.36\00:25:31.33
for their rescue.
00:25:31.36\00:25:33.36
His embrace of humanity
reaches far beyond race,
00:25:33.40\00:25:38.07
far beyond culture,
far beyond religion.
00:25:38.10\00:25:41.90
It can gather everyone
into the kingdom of grace.
00:25:41.94\00:25:46.68
Have you been able to
reach beyond the barriers
00:25:46.71\00:25:49.01
around you?
00:25:49.04\00:25:50.95
Wouldn't you like
to live in a kingdom
00:25:50.98\00:25:53.11
that transcends
00:25:53.15\00:25:54.48
every artificial
boundary we put up?
00:25:54.52\00:25:57.25
You can do that
through your own rendezvous.
00:25:57.29\00:26:00.66
If you'd like to
connect with God today,
00:26:00.69\00:26:03.29
if you'd like to experience
the grace and acceptance
00:26:03.32\00:26:06.09
that God offers,
00:26:06.13\00:26:07.73
then I'd like to
recommend the free gift we have
00:26:07.76\00:26:10.80
for all our Incredible
Journey viewers today.
00:26:10.83\00:26:15.74
It's the booklet,
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00:26:15.77\00:26:20.01
I'm sure you want to
read this small booklet
00:26:20.04\00:26:22.74
that shares the unending
love God has for all of us.
00:26:22.78\00:26:26.68
This booklet is our gift to
you and it's absolutely free.
00:26:26.72\00:26:30.99
I guarantee there are no
cost or obligations whatsoever.
00:26:31.02\00:26:35.36
So make the most of
this wonderful opportunity
00:26:35.39\00:26:38.69
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we have for you today.
00:26:38.73\00:26:43.57
Phone or text us at
0436 333 555 in Australia
00:26:43.60\00:26:49.50
or 020 422 2042 in New Zealand,
00:26:49.54\00:26:54.48
or visit our website TiJ.tv
00:26:54.51\00:26:58.21
to request today's free offer,
00:26:58.25\00:27:00.15
and we'll send it to
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00:27:00.18\00:27:02.98
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00:27:03.02\00:27:04.75
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00:27:04.79\00:27:08.32
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00:27:08.36\00:27:11.56
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Don't delay,
call or text us now.
00:27:18.67\00:27:21.10
If you've enjoyed our visit
00:27:24.27\00:27:25.61
to the home of
Jesse Owens in Alabama,
00:27:25.64\00:27:28.34
and our
reflections on the love, grace,
00:27:28.38\00:27:30.68
and acceptance Jesus offers,
00:27:30.71\00:27:33.21
then be sure to
join us again next week,
00:27:33.25\00:27:36.08
when we will share another
of life's journeys together.
00:27:36.12\00:27:39.69
Until then, let's
commit our lives to God
00:27:39.72\00:27:43.16
and ask His blessing
upon us and our families.
00:27:43.19\00:27:46.93
Let's pray.
00:27:46.96\00:27:48.90
Dear Heavenly Father,
thank You for Your love.
00:27:48.93\00:27:53.03
Thank You that we can
feel valued and accepted
00:27:53.07\00:27:56.37
because of Your love
00:27:56.40\00:27:57.74
and the gift of
salvation that You offer us.
00:27:57.77\00:28:00.74
We open up our hearts
to You, the God of grace,
00:28:00.78\00:28:04.08
forgiveness, and mercy.
00:28:04.11\00:28:06.51
We accept Your
gift of eternal life
00:28:06.55\00:28:09.45
and want to make a
rendezvous with You.
00:28:09.48\00:28:12.15
In Jesus' name we pray, amen.
00:28:12.19\00:28:15.56