Failing in just one event can end a decathlete's entire competition, with no points scored and no chance of recovery - no matter how well they've performed elsewhere.
Steve Fritz had finished the best competition of his life, scoring 8644 points, more than Bruce Jenner produced to win the Montreal gold. That got him only fourth place.
Paul Terek's personal best in the decathlon came at the 2004 U.S. Olympic Trials in Sacramento where he scored 8312 points and finished in 3rd place to earn a spot in the Athens Olympic Games.
This project presents comprehensive all ‐time rankings of track and field athletes, evaluating their careers using criteria inspired by Track & Field News world rankings ‐ honors, records, consistency, and head ‐to ‐head
Estonia has a deserved image of an e-country, but only a few know that one of the first to conquer the world in this field was Decathlon 2000! Being the best in your field is a very inspiring goal. Even small things can be big if you have knowledge and enthusiasm - Raul Rebane, communication consultant