Adhemar Ferreira da Silva

Adhemar Ferreira da Silva (September 29, 1927 – January 12, 2001) was a Brazilian triple jumper. He won two Olympic gold medals and set four world records, the last being 16.56 metres in 1955 Pan American Games. In his early career he also competed in the long jump, placing fourth at the 1951 Pan American Games. He broke world records in triple jump on five occasions during his illustrious career. To date, he remains the only track and field athlete from South America to have won two Olympic gold medals.

He remained the sole Olympic gold medalist for Brazil until the 1980 Summer Olympics. He is regarded as one of the finest South American athletes in history, and for decades was the only Brazilian athlete to have won gold in two consecutive Olympics (a record that stood until 2012). He was the first Brazilian individual athlete to have set a world record in any sporting event. He became an extraordinary exceptional triple jumper despite not excelling in his speed and long jumping abilities.

Silva was a polyglot, having learned English, Finnish, French, Japanese, Italian, German, and Spanish in addition to Portuguese. He had close association with Czech veteran long-distance runner Emil Zátopek for over 50 years. Silva was a member of the São Paulo Futebol Clube, and because of him, the team coat has two gold stars above its emblem. He also had a short stint for Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama from 1955 to 1959. Silva was born in São Paulo, in a poor family. His father was a railway worker and his mother was a cook. He began competing in the triple jump in 1947. He originally wanted to be a professional footballer but he switched to triple jumping after trying it for the first time at the tender age of 19. Until the age of 19, he did not take up athletics. He would call his lifelong mentor and coach Dietrich Gerner as his "German dad" and the duo maintained a very strong bond. He soon rose to prominence climbing the ladders and rising through the ranks within such a short time frame after taking up the sport of triple jump.