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| Personal information | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Patrick Clifford Matzdorf | |||||||||||
| Born | December 26, 1949 Sheboygan, Wisconsin | |||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||
| Sport | Athletics | |||||||||||
| Event | High jump | |||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | ||||||||||||
| Personal best | 2.29 m (1971)[1] | |||||||||||
Medal record
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Patrick Clifford Matzdorf (born December 26, 1949)[1] is an American former high jumper, who set a world record of 2.29 meters (7'-6 1/4") at a World All-Star Track Meet in Berkeley, California. Matzdorf, a Junior at the University of Wisconsin, entered the July 3, 1971 meet against the Soviet Union with a personal best of 7'-3" (2.21 m.) achieved earlier that year in March. He broke the world record that day on his third attempt at 2.29 meters.[2]
Matzdorf utilized the bent-leg straddle jumping style, a modification of the classic straight-leg straddle which dominated the sport in the 1950s and 1960s.[2]
At the University of Wisconsin, he played basketball as well.
Patrick Clifford Matzdorf worked for AT&T Bell Labs at Indian Hill in Autoplex. He coined the phrase "wireless" as part of a standards meeting and was distinguished by his mustache.
During his life at AT&T, according to co-workers, he played softball, which every time at the plate he stroked a home run. A company teammate, Tom Giammarresi, remembers "his throws from left field that were, not far off the ground, and traveled all the way to home plate like bullets." He also played coed volleyball. According to Sheila K. Brown Klinger, she stated "we all played volleyball together at IH (Randy Downing, director, and Dave Carbaugh, DH, were also on our team)."
