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Athlete known for infamous collision with Mary Decker at 1984 Olympics to speak at Cal U cross country program’s annual summer camp

Zola (Budd) Pieterse, a two-time Olympian best known for competing barefoot during her track and field career and an infamous collision during the 1984 Olympics, will speak at 7 p.m. Aug. 1 in Blaney Theatre, located inside Steele Hall at California University of Pennsylvania.

Zola (Budd) Pieterse

Her talk is part of the Cal U cross country program’s annual summer camp. Admission is free, and the public is welcome to attend.

A native of South Africa, Pieterse competed for Great Britain in the 1984 Summer Olympics, in Los Angeles, and South Africa in the 1992 Summer Olympics, in Barcelona.

Her well-documented collision with American Mary Decker in the 3,000-meter race at the 1984 Olympics thrust her onto the national stage.

“Despite all this adversity and even receiving death threats over a track race, Zola is optimistic, generous, and very nice,” said Daniel Caulfield, head coach of Cal U’s cross country team. “People need to always retain hope no matter how bad things may seem, and hopefully listening to Zola will help in that process.”

“Our goal at camp is to educate, inspire and motivate,” Caulfield added.

During her international track career, Pieterse twice broke the world record in a period of less than three years in the women’s 5,000 meters, and twice was the women’s winner at the World Cross Country Championships.

Pieterse still holds two junior world records in the mile and the 3,000 meters.

She is a head men’s and women’s cross country coach and assistant track and field coach at Coastal Carolina University.

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