Editing Armin Hary

{{Short description|German sprinter (born 1937)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2023}}
{{Infobox sportsperson
| name = 
| image = Armin Hary Portrait 1960.jpg
| caption = Armin Hary 1960
| birth_name = 
| fullname = 
| nationality = 
| residence = 
| birth_date = {{birth-date and age|22 March 1937}}
| height = 1.82 m
| weight = 71 kg
| country = 
| sport = Sprint running
| pb = 100 m: 10.0 (1960)<br>200 m: 20.5 <br>400 m: 50.6<ref name=r1>[https://web.archive.org/web/20051130015242/http://www.leichtathletik.de/index.asp?pg=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.leichtathletik.de%2Fdokumente%2Fathleten_portrait.asp%3FID%3D1391 Armin Hary]. leichtathletik.de</ref>
| retired = 
| olympics = 
| highestranking = 
| show-medals = yes
| medaltemplates = {{MedalCountry|{{EUA}}}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[Olympic Games]]}}
{{MedalGold| [[1960 Summer Olympics|1960 Rome]] | [[Athletics at the 1960 Summer Olympics|100 m]]}}
{{MedalGold| [[1960 Summer Olympics|1960 Rome]] | [[Athletics at the 1960 Summer Olympics|4 × 100 m]]}}
{{MedalCountry|{{FRG}}}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[European Championships in Athletics|European Championships]]}}
{{MedalGold| [[1958 European Championships in Athletics|1958 Stockholm]] | 100 m}}
{{MedalGold| [[1958 European Championships in Athletics|1958 Stockholm]] | 4 × 100 m}}
}}

'''Armin Hary''' ({{IPA|de|ˈaʁmiːn ˈhaːʁi|-|De-Armin Hary.ogg}}; (born 22 March 1937) is a retired German [[Sprint (running)|sprinter]] who won the 1960 [[Olympic Games|Olympic]] 100 meters dash. He was the first non-American to win the event since [[Percy Williams (sprinter)|Percy Williams]] of Canada took the gold medal in 1928, the only German to ever win the event in the history of the Olympics, the first man to run 100 meters in 10.0 seconds and the last White man to establish a world record in 100 meters dash.

"The most amazing sprinter. I have ever seen". '''[[Jesse Owens]]'''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Olympic Champion Armin Hary {{!}} Official Site |url=https://www.arminhary.com/home.html |access-date=2024-08-16 |website=www.arminhary.com}}</ref>

==Early life==
After playing [[Association football|soccer]] all throughout his childhood Hary switched to sprinting at age 14. Only a few years later, in 1958, he won his first international title when he came first in the 100 m and the 4 × 100 m at the European Championships.<ref name=r2>Knut Teske [http://www.aha-f.de/pages/armin-hary.html Armin Hary – ebenso groß wie verkannt]. aha-f.de</ref>

Also in 1958, Hary appeared to have run a new [[World record progression 100 metres men|world record]] with a time of 10.0 seconds, but the track's slope of {{convert|11 |cm|in|2}} was found to exceed the maximum allowed {{convert|10|cm|in|2}}.

== World record ==
On June 21, 1960 at [[Letzigrund|Letzigrund Stadium]] in [[Zurich]] Hary ran into the history books by running the 100 m in 10.0 seconds, a new word record. But the judges were so shocked, they said it must have been a false start. Hary was allowed a repeat run and ran another 10.0 seconds 35 minutes later.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-09-01 |title=Leichtathletik: Als Armin Hary nach seinem Fabel-Weltrekord bei Olympia unsterblich wurde |url=https://www.sport1.de/news/leichtathletik/2022/03/armin-hary-steht-fur-einen-fabel-weltrekord-der-leichtathletik-rebell-wird-85 |access-date=2024-08-16 |website=SPORT1 |language=de}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://worldathletics.org/competitions/heritage/news/armin-hary-100m-world-record |title=60 years on, Hary recounts his historic 10.0 100m world record |date=2020-06-21 |access-date=2024-08-17 |website=[[World Athletics]] |last=Brockmann |first=Olaf}}</ref>

== Olympic Games 1960 in Rome ==
That same year, at the [[Olympic Games|Olympics]], he achieved his greatest moment of fame. After a nerve-wracking number of near-starts the six men finally came off the mark together, but within two strides Hary had accelerated to a half-meter lead. By the 50-meter mark Hary opened up a two-meter gap, towards the finish Duke’s Dave Sime started closing in,<ref>{{Cite web |last=TIME |date=1960-09-12 |title=Sport: Hary! Hary! Hary! |url=https://time.com/archive/6832544/sport-hary-hary-hary/ |access-date=2024-08-16 |website=TIME |language=en}}</ref> but Hary sprinted to the gold medal in the 100 m dash with a time of 10.2 seconds completing the finest exhibition of sprinting in Olympic history.<ref name=sr>{{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ha/armin-hary-1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200417093936/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ha/armin-hary-1.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=17 April 2020 |title=Armin Hary}}</ref>

Armin Hary also won a 2nd Gold medal in the 4 × 100 m relay when USA was disqualified for an illegal baton pass. Germany's time, 39.5 seconds, equaled their own world record.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20200417173757/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/summer/1960/ATH/mens-4-x-100-metres-relay.html Athletics at the 1960 Roma Summer Games: Men's 4 × 100 metres Relay]. sports-reference.com</ref>

== Fastest starter ==
Due to his reaction time and quick acceleration out of the blocks Hary was often accused of jumping or anticipating the gun. Considered the fastest starter in the world, Hary was periodically tested for his quick reaction time, it was discovered that he had extraordinary reflexes. With the help of high speed photography Armin Hary’s quick start sequence has been well documented and studied. Long believed to be physiologically impossible Hary’s reaction time was recorded at 0.04 seconds compared to the average human’s of 0.132 seconds.

The new IAAF false start rule of 0.100 is based on the fact that no human besides Hary has ever been able to react faster to the sound of the gun.

His iconic starts have earned him the nickname “Thief of Starts” from the term “Thief of Hearts”.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lee |first=Jimson |date=2009-03-01 |title=Armin Hary - The 1960 100 meter Olympic Champion |url=https://speedendurance.com/2009/02/28/armin-hary-the-1960-100-meter-olympic-champion/#google_vignette |access-date=2024-08-16 |website=SpeedEndurance.com |language=en-GB}}</ref>

== Sponsors ==
He was also the first track star to be affected by the rivalry between [[Adidas]] and [[Puma (brand)|Puma]]; each of the two then-fledgling companies wanted the "world's fastest man" to wear its shoes at the 1960 Olympics, putting him right in the middle of the [[Dassler brothers feud|Dassler brother feud]].<ref name="sr" /> During the companies expensive bidding war for the most famous athlete in the world, Hary realised that neither company had an exclusivity clause in their contract, so without telling the other, he signed with both. Wearing Puma spikes on the track in his 100 meter final and Adidas shoes on the victory stand when receiving his gold medal.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lamont |first=Tom |date=2010-01-10 |title=Frozen in time: Armin Hary wins 100m Olympic Gold, Rome, 1960 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2010/jan/10/frozen-in-time-olympics-100m |access-date=2024-08-16 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

== Personal life ==
In 1966 he married Christina Diana H. Bagusat heiress of the [[Bagusat]] fortune, with whom he has two children, his son Armin jr. and his daughter Diana. Hary also has a daughter with acclaimed actress [[Helga Charlotte Tolle]].

== End of career ==
In the early 1960s Hary was forced to retire from sprinting after suffering serious injuries in a car accident.

==Awards and honours ==
* 1960 received a unique medal promised to the first person to run 100 m in 10 sec by Hirohito the emperor of Japan
* 2000 Runner of the Century
* 2000 Athlete of the Century
* 2008 Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
* 2010 street named after him<ref>{{Cite web |last=Zeitung |first=Saarbrücker |date=2010-05-11 |title=Hier kommt Sprinter Armin Hary zu Ehren |url=https://www.saarbruecker-zeitung.de/saarland/hier-kommt-sprinter-armin-hary-zu-ehren_aid-535432 |access-date=2024-08-16 |website=Saarbrücker Zeitung |language=de}}</ref>
* 2011 inducted into the German Sports Hall of Fame.<ref name="sr" />

[[File:Men 100m final 1960 Olympics.jpg|thumb|center|560px|100 m final in the 1960 Olympics. Hary is on the far left in Lane 6.]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Armin Hary}}
* {{Olympics.com profile|org_archive=20201104091610}}
* {{Olympedia}}
* {{Official website|https://www.arminhary.com}}

{{s-start}}
{{s-ach|rec}}
{{s-bef|before={{flagicon|ITA}} [[Livio Berruti]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[European record progression 100 metres men|European Record Holder Men's 100m]]|years=21 June 1960 – 19 June 1968}}
{{s-aft|after={{flagicon|FRA}} [[Roger Bambuck]]}}
{{s-end}}

{{Footer Olympic Champions 100 m Men}}
{{Footer Olympic Champions 4x100 m Men|1960}}
{{Footer European Champions 100 m Men}}
{{Footer European Champions 4x100 m Men}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hary, Armin}}
[[Category:1937 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:People from Saarbrücken (district)]]
[[Category:German male sprinters]]
[[Category:World record setters in athletics (track and field)]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1960 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Olympic athletes for the United Team of Germany]]
[[Category:Olympic gold medalists for the United Team of Germany]]
[[Category:European Athletics Championships medalists]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1960 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Olympic gold medalists in athletics (track and field)]]
[[Category:Athletes from Saarland]]
[[Category:West German Athletics Championships winners]]
[[Category:20th-century German sportsmen]]