PITTSBURG – After suffering through the cruelest of misfortune, former Cal track star Eddie Hart felt sorry for everyone else but himself.

Hart was one of the favorites to win the gold medal in the 100 meters as the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany. But because of a scheduling snafu, he never made it to his quarterfinal race and thus never got the chance to reach the medal stand.

Hart ran a successful qualifying heat the morning of Aug. 31, 1972. After returning to the Olympic Village for part of the day, he came back to Olympiastadion later that afternoon only to find out his quarterfinal had already been completed.

A stunned Hart made the bus ride back to Olympic Village with his sprint teammates and U.S. sprint coach Stan Wright. A reporter snuck onto the same bus and tried to ask questions to Hart and teammate Rey Robinson, who also missed the race.

"Stan Wright tore into him," Hart recalled recently during a lengthy interview in his hometown of Pittsburg. "I felt sorry for the guy. This was a scoop. He would have had an exclusive. The reporter just kind of sat there quietly on the bus with us after that. I almost wanted to talk to him."

Hart's compassion in such a moment of personal anguish is one of many displays of selflessness he exhibited after a heart-wrenching mistake foiled a lifelong dream. Whomever was to blame for Hart and his sprint teammates receiving the wrong time for the quarterfinals – Wright, the U.S. Olympic Committee, the German officials on-site at the stadium – Hart immediately forgave them all.
It's an improbable testament to human empathy – one that undoubtedly helped Hart navigate the indescribable disappointment that followed.

"The most difficult thing about missing the race wasn't about me – it was about the people that loved and cared about me," Hart said. "I knew how it would impact them because they knew what it meant to me. Everyone was trying to put on a good face for me, but I knew what was going on. That was painful for me because I knew they were feeling this pain as a result of me."

After Hart's qualifying race, Wright confirmed the time of the quarterfinals with German officials. But while relaxing in his room at the Olympic Village, Hart noticed the time published in some literature he was given was different than what Wright was told. Wright and the sprinters decided to immediately return to the stadium just to make sure they didn't miss the race.

They waited for a bus to transport them back to Olympiastadion near ABC-TV's headquarters, and they noticed the 100 meters being run on a monitor. They originally thought it was a replay of their heats from earlier in the day, but an ABC official told them it was live.

"At that instant, I realized I was in trouble," Hart said.

ABC immediately put them in one of its studio buses and raced to the stadium as fast as possible, speeding the wrong direction down a one-way street at one point, and ignoring a German policeman's command to stop. By the time the U.S. contingent reached the track, the quarterfinals for Hart and Robinson were already completed.

"It was tough," Hart said. "I cried. It hurt. It was painful. After all that work and dedication and sacrifice, it was all gone. But I didn't have a whole bunch of time to think about it because it was right there in my face. The next day after we missed the race, it was the No. 1 news story in the world. I couldn't hide and I couldn't get away. So I just said, 'life happens.' It really tested who I was."

Wright ended up becoming the primary fall guy for the mistake, but Hart never believed it was his coach's fault. Upon returning to Cal from the Olympics, he had teammate Cliff West drove him to Sacramento, where Wright lived.

"I told Stan Wright that I loved him and we would always be friends," Hart said. "I wanted to be crystal clear about that. He took the blow for the incident, and he took it hard. He let them attack him, and the primary reason was because he didn't want them to blame us. I didn't blame him in the first place. I never thought it was his fault."

Hart did earn a gold medal in the 4x100 relay. He continued to compete at Cal and earned his degree, but never seriously considered making another run for the 1976 Olympics. He settled down and married his wife, Gwen, and started a family.

The foundation for his compassionate, forgiving personality was formed growing up in Pittsburg under the guidance of his parents, T.J. and Florence. Hart originally attended Contra Costa Junior College, where was voted the Most Outstanding Athlete at the California state meet as a sophomore. He received offers from every school in the Pac-8 and beyond, but staying home at Cal was a no-brainer.

Hart won the NCAA Championship in the 100 meters while running for the Golden Bears.

"Coming to Cal was one of the best decisions I made in my life," Hart said. "Obviously, having a degree from Cal is not a bad thing by any stretch. And being an alumni from Cal is a pretty good deal."

Hart, who will turn 70 in April, has remained connected to Cal over the years. He is a member of the Big C Society and spent time on the Cal Athletic Hall of Fame committee. Hart still drops by the track offices to visit the track coaching staff from time to time and keeps in touch with former teammates and instructors.

Hart also started the "Eddie Hart All In One Foundation" in 2003, a non-profit that allows kids and parents to interact with Olympians and learn essential life skills. As part of the foundation, Hart regularly brings kids to Cal athletic events.

"Cal was a great experience," Hart said. "I loved it and still love it. Whenever I'm on campus, I feel good. I have a certain pride about being a Cal graduate."