Sueo Ōe (大江 季雄, Ōe Sueo, August 2, 1914 – December 24, 1941) was a Japanese athlete who competed mainly in the pole vault. He won a bronze medal at the 1936 Summer Olympics held in Berlin, Germany, tying with his teammate Shuhei Nishida. When the two declined to compete against each other to decide a winner, Nishida was awarded the silver after a decision of the Japanese team, on the basis that Nishida had cleared the height in fewer attempts.[2] The competition was featured in a scene in the documentary Olympia, filmed by Leni Riefenstahl. On their return to Japan, Nishida and Ōe had their Olympic medals cut in half, and had a jeweler splice together two new “friendship medals”, half in bronze and half in silver.[3]
 Sueo Ōe (left) and Shuhei Nishida in 1930 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Native name | 大江 季雄 |
| Nationality | Japanese |
| Born | August 2, 1914 Nachikatsuura, Wakayama, Japan |
| Died | December 24, 1941 (aged 27) Luzon, Philippines |
| Alma mater | Keio University[1] |
| Height | 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in) |
| Weight | 60 kg (130 lb) |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Athletics |
| Event | Pole vault |
Medal record | |
In 1937 Ōe set a national record at 4 m 35 cm that stood for 21 years. In 1939 he joined the Imperial Japanese Army and was killed in action in Luzon on December 24, 1941.[1][4][5][6]
References edit
- ^ a b 舞鶴出身オリンピック選手 プロフィール. soukaku.com
- ^ "The Olympians who took matters into their own hands when they weren't allowed to share their medal". Independent.co.uk. 8 August 2016. Archived from the original on 2022-05-25.
- ^ Shuhei Nishida. sports-reference.com
- ^ Sueo Oe. sports-reference.com
- ^ "Olympians Who Were Killed or Missing in Action or Died as a Result of War". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 24 July 2018.
- ^ "「戦没オリンピアン」を追う 広島市立大の曾根名誉教授" [Emeritus Professor Sone of Hiroshima City University chasing "War Dead Olympians"] (in Japanese). Nikkei. August 16, 2018. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
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