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Blaine Lindgren, Olympic silver medalist from Utah, dies at 80

(AP Photo) Hayes Jones of Detroit, bottom right, and Blaine Lindgren of Salt Lake City, clear the last hurdle in the 110-meter hurdle final which Jones won at the Olympic games in Tokyo, Oct. 18, 1964. At bottom left is Russia's Anatoly Mikhailov who came in third. At top left is Mariel Duriez of France of who ran fifth, and going over a hurdle is Edy Ottoz of Italy, who came in fourth.

  | Oct. 6, 2019, 8:23 p.m.

Blaine Lindgren, a Salt Lake City native who won a silver medal in track and field in the 1964 Olympics, died Saturday. He was 80.

Lindgren is remembered in Olympic history for just missing a gold medal in the 110-meter hurdles in Tokyo, where he leaned too soon toward the tape at the finish line and U.S. teammate Hayes Jones was awarded the victory.

Lindgren is the most recent University of Utah graduate to earn an Olympic medal for the United States in the Summer Games. Women's swimmer Wang Xiaophing medaled for China in 1992.

Lindgren, who in recent years lived in the Utah County town of Salem, played football and competed in track and field at Cyprus High School in Magna, graduating in 1957. He then became an All-American for Utah and later won a gold medal in the Pan American Games.

A longtime football referee at the high school and college levels, Lindgren worked in the banking industry and was a board member of the Utah Sports Hall of Fame Foundation. He was inducted into the UHSOFF in 1972 and was similarly honored by Cyprus, the Utah Summer Games, the University of Utah Crimson Club and the National Federation of High Schools.

In 1999, commemorating the 20th century of athletics in America, Sports Illustrated listed him No. 10 among the 50 Greatest Sports Figures from Utah.

Lindgren is survived by his wife, Marva, and five children. An observance is scheduled at 1 p.m. Saturday at Larkin Mortuary in Salt Lake City, with visitation one hour prior to the service.