Stanford Stadium or Angell Field, Palo Alto, CA, USA, May 12, 1928
As the Amsterdam Olympic Games approached, the level of athletics performance began to rise. Emerson Spencer, a lad from San Francisco who had lost one eye in a car accident, toiled in May on his home turf at Stanford, breaking the 400 meters world record. The clock stopped at 47.0. The performance might have been slightly improved by the fact that the 500m track had only one turn. The official record, however, was accepted. The former record, run by Ted Meredith of the USA, had reached the age of 12.
The quality of the Stanford competition is highlighted by the fact that Spencer's teammate John Morrison, who finished second, also ran a strong 48.5, although he clearly lost to Spencer.
Spencer began his athletics career as a hurdler. After his vision was impaired, he could no longer run the hurdles, so the move to flat races was a necessity. A similar, albeit milder, problem is also faced by Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone; being nearsighted, she has to squint her eyes when approaching the hurdles.
Ward Edmonds won the pole vault, clearing 4.11 (13-6) for the fourth time in the spring.
1–4 (Spalding's Athletic Almanac)