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 At a time when some his age are mulling retirement, Phil Byrne '62 is
breaking records and winning medals. In the last year or so,
Byrne has participated in the indoor pentathlon at the U.S. National Masters;
the
outdoor pentathlon at the Southeast Masters in Raleigh, N.C.;
the decathlon at the Potomac Valley meet in Washington, D.C.; the U. S.
National Decathlon
Championship in Tacoma, Wash.; the decathlon at the World Masters
Championship in Brisbane, Australia; and the pentathlon at the U.S. Masters
Outdoor
Championship in Baton Rouge, La. And he has the medals to prove
it.
"Winning the nationals did give me some confidence as I headed for Australia," says
Byrne. "I thought I had a shot at a medal."
The World Championships in Masters Track & Field are held every two years,
moving around the world like the Olympics. Roughly 5,000 athletes from 80 countries
(including 405 from the United States) competed over a 10-day period. In the
decathlon, there were a total of 197 competitors entered, with 22 in Byrne's
age group (60-64), which also included Emil Pawlik, the defending world champion,
who has become Byrne's friend and main rival. Pawlik had never been beaten
in multi-event competition, but Byrne managed "personal records" in three of
his five events. With 7607 overall points, Byrne was the winner in his age
group.
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