Early this year Barry Schur had to make a decision. It was a choice between the decathlon and high jump.
In his first year at Kansas, the lanky 6-5 sophomore had recorded the second best decathlon score in the country among the nation’s collegiate freshmen.
But Schur, a native of Tucson, Ariz., still wasn’t up among the big boys. So Barry got together with KU track aide Harvey Greer and they talked it out.
“It was my opinion,” Greer explained, “that Barry didn’t have a chance to make the Olympics in the decathlon. Initially, he was reluctant to drop it because he really likes the decathlon.”
No longer, however, is Barry Schur sorry he decided to concentrate solely on the high jump. Not after what he did Saturday in the Kansas Relays.
Schur became the first Kansas athlete ever to clear seven feet. He didn’t stop there, either, clearing a very important extra inch.
That inch gave him the Rleays record (the old mark was 7-0 1/4) and, more exciting to Schur, qualified him for the Olympic trials. He needed 7-0 5/8 to reach the trial standard.
“Up until now,” Barry gushed after clearing 7-1 in the early evening twilight Saturday, “I’d been wondering if I should go back to the decathlon or not … but right now not being in the decathlon anymore doesn’t bother me a bit.”
Schur’s best previous leap was 6-10 ¼, so there was little reason to think e’d go as high as 7-1 Saturday.
Using the “flop” method he’s polished ever since he was a sophomore in high school, Schur didn’t miss until he tried 7-2 — just ticking the bar with his trail le on his third and final try.
First he cleared the opening height of 6-6, then 6-8, then 6-10, then 7-0 and, at last, 7-1. All on the first attempt.
“Not missing early,” Schur confided, “saved a lot of strength.”
It didn’t hurt his confidence either.
“Yeah,” he smiled. “Usually I’m pressing out there, but today I took it easy.”
Overlooked in Schur’s accomplishment was a far-reaching effort by another Kansas jumper, a freshman Danny Seay of Shawnee Mission North.
Seay captured second place in the long jump with a 24-7 ¾ flight. That was more than eight inches further than Seay has ever gone before.
Encouraging to the Kansas coaches was the fact that no KU freshman had ever jumped that far previously.
“I’m thrilled to death,” said Greer of Seay’s leap. “He is going to be one fine athlete by the time he leaves here.”
Seay, incidentally, also high jumps, having gone as high as 6-8. In the high school long jump here last year, he finished second at 23-6.
Kansas also pulled in with a surprising second place in the university 880 relay during Saturday’s action. Southern Illinois won in 1:23.3 with the Jayhawks trailing at 1:24.0.
The KU splits were: Tom Scavuzzo 21.2, Emmett Edwards 20.4, Phil Stepp 20.8, and Mark Lutz 20.6.
Other Kansas placings Saturday were Sam Colson third in the javelin at 236-7, Bill Hatcher second in the pole vault at 24-6 ½ and Jon Callen fifthe in the steeplechase at 9:02.8.
The Jayhawks will go en masse to the Drake Relays next weekend in Des Moines.
