Paavo Nurmi, arguably the world’s greatest distance runner, held a track meet at the Coliseum. With over 500 athletes competing, many of them recent Olympians, Nurmi, of Finland, was the clear star attraction. Known as the “Flying Finn,” Nurmi raced against American Lloyd Hahn to try and break the world record in the mile & a half race, as well as other exhibition events against local Native American tribes from California.
One of Nurmi’s most impressive talents was not only his speed but his rare skill to adjust his pace in a variety of different races, from the 1500m to the 10,000m — even competing in the 3000m steeplechase!
Throughout the course of his career, Nurmi set 22 world records and won nine gold & three silver medals in his 12 track & field events at the Olympics (1920, 1924 and 1928). Nurmi, who rarely ran without a stopwatch in his hand, has been credited for introducing the “even pace” strategy and analytic approach to running, as well as for making running a major international sport.