Dick Fosbury Cause Of Death And Obituary – The Legend Dies At 76

• The renowned athlete was profoundly loved by his fans. Fosbury passed away on Sunday, March 12th, 2023, at age 76. 
• According to some sources, Dick passed away due to the recurrence of his lymphoma. 
• Fosbury was first diagnosed with lymphoma in March 2008.

Dick Fosbury’s cause of death and obituary is a topic of interest to many. The renowned athlete was profoundly loved by his fans. Fosbury passed away on Sunday, March 12th, 2023, at age 76. 

According to some sources, Dick passed away due to the recurrence of his lymphoma. 

Fosbury was first diagnosed with lymphoma in March 2008. At that time, the lymphoma was at stage one, and Dick underwent surgery to remove the tumor enveloping his lower spine. 

Unfortunately, due to the tumor’s close proximity to the spine and adjoining vessels, it could not be excised completely. Therefore, Fosbury had to opt for chemotherapy to shrink the tumor. 

The famous high jumper declared that his cancer was in remission in 2009. In an interview with the Corvallis Gazette-Times in March 2014, Fosbury proclaimed that he is finally cancer free and doing great healthwise. 

Unfortunately, cancer recurred, and Fosbury’s fragile body could not fight it anymore. 

The high jumper is survived by his partner, son Erich, and two stepdaughters, Stephanie and Kristin.

Dick Fosbury was the lanky leaper who revamped the technical discipline of the high jump and won an Olympic gold medal with his ‘Fosbury Flop.’

At the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, Fosbury took off at an angle, leaped backward, bent himself into a “J” shape to catapult his 6-foot-4 frame over the bar, then crashed headfirst into the landing pit.

It was a convention-defying move, and with the world watching, Fosbury cleared 2.24 meters (7 feet, 4 1/4 inches) to win the gold medal and set an Olympic record. 

“The world legend is probably used too often. Dick Fosbury was a true LEGEND! He changed an entire event forever with a technique that looked crazy at the time, but the result made it the standard,” tweeted Michael Johnson. 

The world legend is probably used too often. Dick Fosbury was a true LEGEND! He changed an entire event forever with a technique that looked crazy at the time but the result made it the standard.

— Michael Johnson (@MJGold) March 13, 2023

With time, Fosbury’s move was used beyond its literal meaning. Business leaders and university professors use it as a study in innovation and willingness to take chances and break the mold.

As a teenager at Medford High School in Oregon, Fosbury started tinkering with a new technique in the early ’60s. 

“During my junior year, I carried on with this new technique, and each meet I continued to evolve or change, but I was improving. My results were getting better,” said Fosbury in an interview. 

His technique was the subject of scorn and ridicule. The term ‘Fosbury Flop’ is credited to the Medford Mail-Tribune, which wrote the headline “Fosbury Flops Over the Bar” after one of his high school meets to make fun of him. 

Fosbury did not let the sardonic comment break down his spirit, and he used it to motivate himself to do better in the future.