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Dave Sime

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Dave Sime
Sime at the1960 Olympics
Personal information
Full nameDavid William Sime
NationalityUnited States
Born(1936-07-25)July 25, 1936
Paterson, New Jersey,U.S.
DiedJanuary 12, 2016(2016-01-12)(aged 79)
Miami,Florida,U.S.
EducationDuke University,1958
M.D.1962
OccupationOphthalmologist
Height6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight195 lb (88 kg)[1]
Sport
SportTrack
Eventsprint running
ClubDuke Blue Devils,Durham
Medal record
Representingthe
United States
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 1960 Rome 100 m

David William Sime(/sɪm/;July 25, 1936 – January 12, 2016) was an Americansprinter,multi-sport athlete atDuke University,and a pioneeringophthalmologist.He won a silver medal in the100-meter dash(photo finish) at the1960 Olympic Games,and held several sprint records during the late 1950s.[2][3][4][5][6]

Early life

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Sime was born on July 25, 1936, inPaterson, New Jersey,the son of Evelyn and Charles Sime,[7]neither of whom graduated from high school.[8]He grew up inFair Lawnand playedfootballandbaseballatFair Lawn High School,but did not run track. He was a charter member of the Fair Lawn High School Athletics Hall of Fame.[9][8]

Sime applied to theUnited States Military AcademyatWest Point,as his dream was to become a pilot, but discovered he wascolor blindand accepted abaseballscholarshiptoDuke UniversityinNorth Carolina.[10]

Duke University

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Sime was a member of Duke'sbaseballandtrack and fieldteams, and playedfootballfor a season in 1958 while a first-yearmedical schoolstudent.[1][8]His beginnings in track were accidental: his 100-yard dash on an unmowed grass surface in baseball shoes was a rapid 9.8 seconds, and the coaches soon asked him to join the track team. Opting not to play freshman football, he had gone out for fall track to stay in shape for baseball.[11]Sime hit over.400 as a freshman and had the intention continuing in baseball for coach Ace Parker, but his success during winter track changed that. Parker was a former multi-sport athlete and recognized the exceptional speed and Olympic potential; Sime focused on track in 1956, then split time between both sports in 1957.[12][13][14]

Sime achieved his greatest collegiate victory as a 19-year-old sophomore at theDrake Relaysin April 1956, where he was named the meet's outstanding performer after setting a meet record in the 100-yard dash in 9.4 seconds;[15]he handedBobby MorrowofAbilene Christianhis first loss in over thirty races in the 100, and was inducted into the Drake Relays Athlete Hall of Fame in 1959.[16]Sime was named theACC Athlete of the Yearin 1956 for his accomplishments in track and baseball. Prior to theOlympic trials,he and Morrow appeared on the cover ofSports Illustratedin 1956.[10][17]

Sime was selected by theDetroit Lionsin the 29th round (341st overall) of the1959 NFL draft,but he opted not to play football professionally and continued at medical school.

In 2010, Duke named him their most outstanding athlete of the 20th century.[10][18]

Olympics

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100 m finalphoto finish at the1960 Olympics;
Sime is at the far right in Lane 1

Sime was unable to make the1956 OlympicsinMelbourneat age twenty due to a leg injury in his first attempt to ride a horse.[10][19]Four years later (and midway through medical school), he competed inRomeand won a silver medal in the100 meters,edged out byArmin HaryofGermanyin aphoto finish.[5]

Sime anchored the U.S. to an apparent victory in the4 × 100 m relay,posting a world record time of 39.4 seconds. The team was disqualified because at the first exchange from Budd to Norton, Norton started too early and the exchange happened outside the changeover box.[5][20]During his career, he held world records at 100 yards, 220 yards, and the220 yd low hurdles.

During the Rome Olympics, Sime worked with theCIAtrying to entice Soviet long-jumperIgor Ter-Ovanesyanto defect; the attempt failed.[21]

Ophthalmology

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Sime never played sports professionally. He graduated in the top 10% of his class at theDuke University School of Medicine.He then practiced medicine as anophthalmologistinFlorida,where he was a pioneer inintraocular lensimplants.[10][18]

Personal life

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Sime's eldest child, Sherrie, went to theUniversity of Virginia,where she was the school's top-rankedsingles tennisplayer. His son Scott was a statewrestlingchampion and all-state football player atCoral Gables Senior High Schoolbefore going on to his father's alma mater at Duke, where he was a startingfullback.[4][22]

Sime's youngest child, Lisa, attendedStanford University,where she was a standoutsoccerplayer. There she met her future husband,Ed McCaffrey,aCardinalwide receiver who went on to win threeSuper Bowlsand aPro Bowlduring a 13-yearNFLcareer.[4][10]Three of their first four sons (his grandsons):Max,Christian,andLuke McCaffrey,are anAmerican footballcoach and a formerNFLwide receiver,an NFLrunning back,and an NFLwide receiver,respectively.

After a lengthy battle with cancer, Sime died at age 79 in 2016.[6]

References

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  1. ^ab"Dave Sime joins Duke football team".Eugene Register-Guard.(Oregon). Associated Press. October 8, 1958. p. 2C.
  2. ^Murray, Jim(March 21, 1979)."A gold medal to see".Schenectady Gazette.(New York). (Los Angeles Times). p. 31.
  3. ^Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen;Mallon, Bill;et al."Dave Sime".Olympics at Sports-Reference.Sports Reference LLC.Archived fromthe originalon April 17, 2020.
  4. ^abcKimmey, Will (August 20, 2001)."Dave Sime, fastest human (July 2, 1956)".Sports Illustrated.p. 20.
  5. ^abcLitsky, Frank (January 15, 2016)."Dave Sime dies at 79; world's fastest sprinter, but far from its luckiest".New York Times.(obituary).RetrievedSeptember 19,2016.
  6. ^abKaufman, Michelle (January 14, 2016)."David Sime, Olympian and doctor, dies at 79".Miami Herald.RetrievedSeptember 19,2016.
  7. ^"Dr. David William Sime (1936-2016)".Miami Herald.(obituary). January 15, 2016.RetrievedSeptember 19,2016.
  8. ^abc"Sime Has Great Day, Breaks World Record".The Miami News.Associated Press. May 6, 1956. Archived fromthe originalon November 11, 2014.RetrievedAugust 31,2011."The 190-pound Fair Lawn, N.J., sophomore, a hot prospect for the U.S. Olympic team, won the 100-yard dash in 9.4, his sixth such performance this year."
  9. ^Roberts, Jeff (April 25, 2010)."Intriguing People: Dave Sime".The Record.(Bergen County, New Jersey).RetrievedJune 25,2013."This was the moment that changed everything for the Paterson-born, Fair Lawn-bred Sime."
  10. ^abcdefJohn Walters (November 20, 2015)."Dave Sime: Olympian, Physician, and Grandfather to a Heisman Candidate".Newsweek.
  11. ^Padwe, Sandy (November 23, 1966)."Dr. Sime is keeping an eye on track".Fort Scott Tribune.(Kansas). NEA. p. 10.
  12. ^"Dave Sime leads double duty men".Sarasota Journal.(Florida). Associated Press. May 10, 1957. p. 16.
  13. ^"Scouts eye Sime hungrily".Wilmington Morning Star.(North Carolina). Associated Press. June 5, 1957. p. 9.
  14. ^"College baseball all-stars named".Wilmington Morning Star.(North Carolina). Associated Press. June 21, 1957. p. 12.
  15. ^"Sime smashes meet record".Sunday Star-News.(Wilmington, North Carolina). Associated Press. April 29, 1956. p. 2c.
  16. ^DrakeRelays
  17. ^Terrell, Roy (July 2, 1956)."And now the biggest battle of all".Sports Illustrated.p. 6.
  18. ^abBill Hensley (February 18, 2011)."The Ballad of Dave Sime".Duke Chronicle.Archived fromthe originalon November 24, 2015.RetrievedNovember 24,2015.
  19. ^"The Sime affair".Sports Illustrated.July 2, 1956. p. 9.
  20. ^"Crowd boos when U.S. relay team disqualified".Bend Bulletin.(Oregon). UPI. September 8, 1960. p. 1.
  21. ^Bull, Andy (May 17, 2020)."Olympic espionage: US sprinter Dave Sime, the CIA and the 1960 Games".The Guardian.ISSN0261-3077.RetrievedMay 17,2020.
  22. ^Patrick Saunders (November 28, 1999)."Broncos' Ed McCaffrey, wife, Lisa, both come from long line of athletes".The Denver Post.
  • Maraniss, David (2008).Rome 1960: The Olympics That Changed the World.New York, Simon & Schuster.ISBN1-4165-3407-5.
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