Book tells the story of Peter Norman, the famous salute and the sadness that followed
When Peter Norman died of a heart attack on October 3, 2006, the US Track and Field Federation named the day of his funeral, October 9, as Peter Norman Day. This week Australian politicians finally recognised Norman's brave stand and officially apologised for the delay. They were honouring his solidarity with black athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos who gave the Black Power salute during the medal ceremony for the men's 200 metres at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City. Howard won the silver medal, making him one of Australia's most successful male sprinters to date (consider how far we were from sprint medals in the London Olympics). When he was told by gold medalist Smith and bronze medalist Carlos that they intended to do during the ceremony, he famously told them, "I'll stand with you." Martin Flanagan of The Age tells the story in an article printed at the time of Norman's death: "They asked Norman if he believed in human rights. He sai