China’s oldest former Olympic athlete, who took part in 1936 Berlin Games, dies aged 103
Guo Jie, who was also a torch bearer at the Beijing Games in 2008, said his Olympic dream lasted 'at most two hours' after being eliminated in the discus event after the first round
China’s oldest former Olympic athlete, who competed in the discus at the 1936 Games in Berlin, died on Sunday at the age of 103, mainland media reports.
Guo Jie, who was born in December 1911 and was part of the Chinese team of more than 70 athletes at the Games, died in Xian, the capital of Shaanxi province, Chinese Business View reported on Monday.
He threw a Chinese record of 42 metres at the national trials in 1936 to qualify for the Games, but was then eliminated after the first round, after failing to reach the later stages of the event by exceeding the minimum distance of 44m.
Guo later said his Olympic dream lasted “at most two hours”.
The former professor at Xian Physical Education University was selected as a torch bearer for the Beijing Olympics in 2008.
His death was confirmed by the university on its website.
