JFIFC    $ &%# #"(-90(*6+"#2D26;=@@@&0FKE>J9?@=C  =)#)==================================================" }!1AQa"q2#BR$3br %&'()*456789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz w!1AQaq"2B #3Rbr $4%&'()*56789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz ?K\G5Ck|INzصF<һ+OT =MwpiF([ʃEt/E6@FUA>G+՞O?mOXc&"ƍ`8rwZɡg uzM X9kvo9(FQ߷KIwVږ#(W-ӚvEڢdNg;96m,i, 0yhÙ&Fv#95lzS Z!X֠깋5f×]G+'ʍ:răQ6C*ރ&"A1`֊ ;bob ְ%[4,xVkԆ|HO]ZMku[v&3#w=xFu_kaѵ>4?@;mI)DQԓ\SwGlgd48=i g5Z`$jg'osh(pmoiik}+/~!ЭOq֪I#cN;_s4j~)P.Q%1Ҙ沕ЖB[D*&"PŔ:lLFpGvN#8WC(vlԚ4 I\vϭC#٭1f& EJ$Tu"tOqv1\NN)U..T(h *2,9{+\叁iZD)ߠ/U/aglX։ +jbѡt#bIT'MY]#;u22Y#Z 5KH֭KqE떓Y&-2w?eUBν2O4?]6 W;=HZ0>ONNm֨{ē&z.;&j =yj6HŒ;V4+4`wϵ!j,9N 6 :F99 Bl%C:sV9v*>sGVeݔߩ,֣Iw9l携l*cPLg r5B4B )6.rßZIrCS% dqq^80 ;D_ s#i[BQ$T Eisij(2;a5*3>S%R;ʞ~GjGP֚sF<.?4@rxOA;Lwb<O¬'Q2w5kfT5°c3tQWs,l]5Vĺ q^JQޙ'j,&}bO۞}jSO¨OBdC [\qrbƛ{/Jz𣙌6R~X6_iʈ;U"^JGOq]`EP=e a surprising answer.&nbsp; "I didn't beat the world four times.&nbsp; Competition is a test of ones self.&nbsp; I made myself as ready as I could and then when I stepped up to compete I would say to myself I have prepared the best I can and there is nothing left for me to do but my very best." </P> <P>Al Oerter never did have professional coaching.&nbsp; But following his four Olympic victories he commented, "Now, I am introduced to professionals everywhere I go: therapists, psychologists, business managers, and trainers.&nbsp; But, I am used to being self reliant and it has worked well for me."&nbsp; Oerter's coaches were a calendar and a towel.&nbsp; He recalls, "my calendar had 1460 days on it, which was the number of days I had to train before the next Olympics.&nbsp; I checked off every day that I gave 110% effort."&nbsp; Then, during training I would use a towel to mark the distance I threw. I never set a goal on 'the perfect distance' I simply worked to beat the towel.&nbsp; Often people would watch me train but I didn't notice them much because I was so focused on that towel.&nbsp; </P> <P>"While training for the Olympics, Oerter adopted the training philosophy of Norm Schemansky: work hard for 45 minutes with no coaxing, no looking at mirrors and no B.S. talk. &nbsp;Norm quickly became one of Al Oerter's greatest heros.&nbsp; Oerter worked hard lifting 12 months a year.&nbsp; So, at age 32 when he won his fourth Olympic Gold Medal, he was 6'-4" and weighed 295 pounds.&nbsp; He was able to arrow grip Bench Press 525 for two reps, Squat (touch a bench at parallel) for 5 reps at 725 pounds, Hang Clean 5 reps at 350 pounds, perform swinging, explosive curls for 5 reps at 325 pounds and do dumbbell alternate presses, flys and curls with 100 to 120 pound dumbbells.&nbsp; "I had a strong back from doing the old Jefferson Lift," remembered Oerter.&nbsp; "I used up to 450 pounds even at a young age."&nbsp;</P> <P>Oerter doesn't think that it is possible for an Upper Limit athlete to avoid injuries.&nbsp; "If you work at elevated levels," reasoned Oerter, "you must expect some injuries.&nbsp; You don't look for injuries but you must push yourself. &nbsp;That is the only way to become stronger."</P> <P>In Rome, Oerter slipped on a muddy ring in the preliminaries and ripped the cartilage loose from his rib cage.&nbsp; "That was devastating," remembered Oerter, "I couldn't sleep, eat or throw. It really hurt!"&nbsp; The doctors told him there was nothing they could do.&nbsp; But, Oerter persisted.&nbsp; So, the doctors agreed to try a method where they froze the muscle, taped it, gave him ammonia capsules and then hoped for the best.</P> <P>Since each competitor gets to keep their best throw from the previous days preliminaries, Oerter could have stayed in the top eight without over extending himself.&nbsp; However, he said, "I just thought about the four years of hard work and those 1460 days. &nbsp;I did not want to cheat myself."&nbsp; Then during finals each competitor was allowed three throws.&nbsp; But because of the excruciating pain, Oerter decided