At 87, he's still raking in the running honors
Plus: A new Ledger crossword; And the news of the week: Patrick Cannon makes the media rounds; Clear backpacks rolling out slowly at CMS high schools; Construction halted on new Panthers facility
Good morning! Today is Saturday, March 12, 2022. You’re reading The Charlotte Ledger’s Weekend Edition.
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Charlotte’s Jim Beatty captured the world’s attention when he became the first person to run a sub-4-minute mile indoors. 60 years later, he’s featured in a new international museum.
Jim Beatty is featured in the new Museum of World Athletics, which is the world’s first 3D virtual sports museum, based in Monaco. (Photo courtesy of MOWA – World Athletics Heritage)
by Cristina Bolling
It’s been 60 years since the 3 minutes and 58 seconds that changed Charlottean Jim Beatty’s life, when he became the first man in history to run the indoor mile in under four minutes.
A crew from ABC’s “Wide World of Sports” was at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena on the night of Feb. 10, 1962, and broadcast the event, making Beatty famous from coast to coast.
He eventually hung up his spikes and went on to serve six terms as a Democratic representative in the N.C. House, and now at age 87 he lives with his wife, Paulette, in southeast Charlotte. Even all these decades later, sports memorabilia still arrives at his home from people across the country requesting his autograph, he says.
A few months ago, an email came in that really caught his eye: the Museum of World Athletics, based in Monaco, planned to honor him in the world’s first 3D virtual sports museum. (World Athletics is the international governing body for the sport of track and field athletics.)
Beatty donated one of his spikes, or running shoes, from his trailblazing 1962 season to the World Athletics Heritage Collection and the Museum of World Athletics, and the museum did a nice writeup of his story on its website in January. The shoe will travel the globe to different track and field events — right now it is in Serbia.
Jim Beatty’s spike, which he donated to the World Athletics Heritage Collection and the Museum of World Athletics, is currently on display in Belgrade, Serbia, ahead of next weekend’s World Athletics Indoor Championships. In April, it’ll move to Portland, Ore., where it’ll be displayed ahead of the World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Ore., in July. (Photo courtesy of MOWA – World Athletics Heritage)
Beatty hasn’t yet traveled to see his shoe displayed in person — he and Paulette, who hails from Belgium, aren’t traveling internationally much these days, he said.
“Just knowing it’s there is a great honor,” he told The Ledger.
It started with a paper route: Beatty grew up in Charlotte and enjoyed boxing while a student at Central High School. While in high school, he picked up a paper route, figuring running while delivering papers would improve his endurance.
He knew he was fast, but didn’t discover just how fast until a friend invited him to join the track team because they needed more runners for the one-mile race. Within four weeks, Beatty was state champion.
He went on to UNC Chapel Hill and won the Atlantic Coast Conference title in 1955 and 1956, shaving his one-mile time to 4 minutes, 6 seconds.
In 1960, he moved to California to train under Hungarian-born coach Mihaly Igloi. Beatty made the 1960 Olympic team, but injured his ankle just before the games and didn’t advance to the 5,000 meter final. He recalls feeling sorry for himself while at the Olympics, when a quote from one of the nuns he knew during high school popped into his head: “May the clouds of adversity never darken the horizon of your life.”
He made a pledge to himself: “I’m going to come back and show what an American can do.”
Jim Beatty made the cover of Sports Illustrated in July 1960, even before he became the first person to run a mile indoors in less than four minutes. (Courtesy of Jim Beatty)
The following year, in 1961, he was ranked No. 1 in the world for the indoor one-mile and 1,500 meter races. He would shatter the indoor four-minute mile the following year. (Roger Bannister of England was the first to break the outdoor 4-minute mile, on May 6, 1954.)
“It was kind of a storybook tale,” Beatty told The Ledger.
Beatty was inducted into the USA National Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1990, the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in 1963 and the Greater Charlotte Sports Hall of Fame in 2004.
He says he’s “truly flattered and grateful” every time he’s given an award. “I’m not one to go around talking about myself,” he says.
“Because of the 4-minute mile, I was fortunate to have so many national and global doors open to me. It really changed a lot of things,” he said. “I broke the outdoor American record four times, I won national championships, everything under the sun. But nothing impacted my life like the indoor 4-minute mile.”
Cristina Bolling is managing editor of the Charlotte Ledger: cristina@cltledger.com
Related: “Mile marker 22 finally comes home” (Sept. 25, 2021) (Beatty is referenced in this article.)
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This week’s crossword theme: Shine On
We’re back with our weekly Charlotte- and Carolinas-themed crossword from Chris King. It’s edited by Tim Whitmire and sponsored by CXN Advisory.
A few of the clues this week:
“Catawba or Yadkin-Pee Dee” (5 letters)
“Terrain that stood in for Gastonia in a recent TikTok” (4 letters)
“Workers at the Belk Theater” (9 letters)
Can you solve the puzzle?
.PDF (suitable for download and printing):
.PUZ (suitable for use on tablets and computers with Across Lite app):
We publish solutions on Mondays. You can check out all our weekly puzzles and answers on our dedicated Crosswords page.
This week in Charlotte: Patrick Cannon sits down for interviews; Charlotte seeks to host Army-Navy game; Finalists named to replace ailing county commissioner; City looks for new flea market site
On Saturdays, The Ledger sifts through the local news of the week and links to the top articles — even if they appeared somewhere else. We’ll help you get caught up. That’s what Saturdays are for.
Education
Clear backpacks and body scanners: (Ledger) Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Superintendent Earnest Winston said the district will soon pilot distribution of clear backpacks at two CMS high schools, Hopewell High and Cochrane Collegiate Academy. The district ordered 46,000 clear backpacks last year in response to a school year that’s seen an increase in violent incidents and reports of guns in high schools. Winston also said seven high schools will be the first to get body scanners later this spring.
Teacher pay: (WFAE) Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Superintendent Earnest Winston outlined a proposal Tuesday to seek an extra $11M in county money to increase teacher pay in CMS schools. Also in the proposal is a request for $6M to boost the minimum wage for CMS teacher assistants from $15 to $16.50.
Politics
Cannon speaks: Former Charlotte Mayor Patrick Cannon, who was arrested on federal corruption charges while he was mayor in 2014 and spent time in jail, went on a media tour this week, talking to local outlets about his current race for a city council at-large seat. In interviews with WSOC, WFAE, WCNC and WBTV, Cannon gave his pitch for a second chance with voters. “Honestly, there’s no real rhyme or reason as to why it was done and I make no excuses for it,” he told WFAE. “Instead, I wish to right my wrongs and prove to people that’s not the real Patrick Cannon.”
New commissioner finalists: (Observer) Mecklenburg County commissioners settled on four finalists to replace Ella Scarborough, who is on medical leave. The finalists are former state Rep. Beverly Earle, former Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools chair Mary McCray, former commissioner Wilhelmenia Rembert and former planning commission chair Sam Spencer. They’ll select a new commissioner next week.
Voter registration: (The New Yorker) Former North Carolina congressman Mark Meadows, who resigned his seat in 2020 to become President Trump’s chief of staff, registered to vote in September 2020 and listed the address of a 14-by-62-foot mobile home southwest of Highlands that it’s not certain he ever lived in.
Local news
City plans replacement flea market: (Observer) City officials said they’re looking for a new flea market site for 200 vendors who became accustomed to selling their wares at the old Eastland Mall site in east Charlotte. The site is being redeveloped and the city cleared vendors and a skate park from the location. Council member Dimple Ajmera said the city “failed” the vendors, while council member Ed Driggs said he disagreed with “the suggestion that it is our obligation to accommodate this need for space.”
Greenway extension: (Axios Charlotte) Mecklenburg County is extending a greenway in south Charlotte by a mile. The new section will run from Johnston Road, where the Four Mile Creek and McAlpine Creek greenways intersect, and run to N.C. 51. Construction is expected to finish by 2024.
PPP fraud trial: (Axios Charlotte) The owner of east Charlotte restaurant La Shish Kabob went to trial this week, charged with fraud after taking $1.7M in Paycheck Protection Program money.
Business
Surging fuel prices hit Charlotte construction: (Ledger 🔒) The quickly rising cost of fuel is causing Charlotte’s real estate and construction industry to brace for higher prices for building materials, which have already been at elevated levels. The Ledger talked with four leaders in construction, who said it’s hard to keep pace with the increases, which could lead to developers putting projects on hold and make housing less affordable.
New details on big Morehead Street project: (Axios Charlotte) The developer behind the plans for three towers on the site of Uptown Cabaret and Midnight Diner — by Morehead and Tryon streets — released more details and renderings of the project. Riverside Investment & Development said the “Queens Bridge Collective” project will have a 42-story office tower, apartment towers of 38 and a 30 stories totaling 650 units, 30,000 s.f. of retail and maybe a hotel. The office tower will be Charlotte’s tallest building outside of uptown.
Office space cutback at Wells: (Ledger 🔒) Wells Fargo is cutting back on the amount of office space it leases in Charlotte and in other big cities. A spokesman told The Ledger that much of the reduction “is due to our underutilization of the space pre-Covid.” The bank’s employment numbers in Charlotte are unchanged.
Sports
Funding dispute halts work on Panthers facility: (WCNC) The Carolina Panthers halted construction of their practice facility in South Carolina, after the city of Rock Hill failed to issue bonds to help fund infrastructure for the project. A city spokeswoman confirmed on Tuesday that Rock Hill hasn’t issued bonds, as required in an agreement with the Panthers, despite assurances by Rock Hill’s mayor on Monday that “we've met all of our obligations required under our agreement.” A York County council member suggested that Rock Hill is “stretched thin financially.”
Charlotte-Atlanta rivalry shifts to soccer: (Fútbol Friday) Fans of Charlotte’s and Atlanta’s pro soccer teams trade barbs in a good-natured rivalry ahead of Sunday’s Charlotte FC game in Atlanta. Plus the story behind the giant “tifo” of Queen Charlotte that was raised at the home opener, as well as the Top 5 moments from last week.
Army-Navy in Charlotte? (Axios Charlotte) Charlotte is bidding to host the 2027 Army-Navy football game. The game usually rotates among cities in the Northeast. Other cities interested include Boston, Chicago, Dallas and Orlando.
No price increase for most Panthers PSLs: (Associated Press) Season tickets to Carolina Panthers game this year will remain the same as last year, except for club seats and suites, the team said this week.
From the Ledger family of newsletters
Art surgeon: (Wednesday 🔒) Charlotte’s Massoud Shiraz is a conservator and restorer of fine art whose expert hands have rescued and revived paintings across the globe. Locally, he’s worked with Charlotte museums and corporate clients like Bank of America and the Duke Endowment, but outside Charlotte, he’s worked for scores of collectors and institutions including the Vatican Museums.
A caseworker with a heart to help: (Ways of Life 🔒) Regina Smith was one of the first Black caseworkers at Crisis Assistance Ministry, where she worked for 22 years before she died in January at age 50. “Regina was the ultimate example of a helper,” says Crisis Assistance Ministry CEO Carol Hardison. “In her 22 years here, she guided tens of thousands of customers through their crisis and toward a brighter future.”
Controversy in Weddington: (Monday) Some neighbors in Weddington are upset over a proposal to build a mixed-use development called Weddington Green that would include 181 single-family and attached homes, an 8-acre park, retail, restaurants and office space. Some neighbors say the project is too high-density for Weddington, and they plan to speak out at a public hearing on Monday night.
Uptown comes back to life, with lunch lines: (Monday) As bank workers return to uptown, they’re finding that many of their favorite lunch spots remain closed. And lines, which were almost nonexistent during the pandemic, are getting longer. “It’s starting to feel like things are waking up again,” one uptown lawyer told us.
Myers Park High sexual assault case: (Wednesday 🔒)The former school resource officer at Myers Park High School, accused in a high-profile lawsuit and in the media of ignoring and downplaying reports of sexual assault, was the responding officer to incidents at the high school that led to six arrests between 2014 and 2017. In court documents filed by the city of Charlotte, lawyers said the disclosures show Officer Bradley Leak actively documented allegations of sexual misconduct. Lawyers for a former student who is suing CMS and CMPD say Leak is an unreliable witness and that there’s a pattern of downplaying assault allegations.
New Fortune 1000 company: (Friday 🔒) Charlotte seems poised to pick up another Fortune 1000 company headquarters this year, with XPO Logistics of Connecticut saying it plans to split into two publicly traded companies. One in the truck brokerages services business would be headquartered in Charlotte.
SouthPark development: (Wednesday 🔒) Owners of the 118 Trianon condos, at the corner of Colony and Roxborough roads, voted this week to approve selling their units, sources told The Ledger. It paves the way for redeveloping the 9.1-acre site.
Greenway closed for 2 years: (Wednesday 🔒) The Little Sugar Creek Greenway, one of the busiest in Charlotte, is closed for the next two years for a renovation timed to coincide with a redevelopment of Atrium Health’s Carolinas Medical Center. The greenway will be closed until spring 2024 between Morehead Street and East Boulevard (Freedom Park).
Consultants suggest new light rail route: (Transit Time) Consultants working with the city of Charlotte say the Charlotte Area Transit System should consider running the future Silver Line through the middle of uptown, instead of along the outskirts as is currently planned. The project risks not receiving federal funding if it runs through areas with low projected ridership.
Boutique hotel for Elizabeth: (Friday 🔒) A Durham developer has filed plans with the city to build a 47-room, six-story boutique hotel in Elizabeth.
Hoax letter: (Friday 🔒) A hoax letter circulated this week among Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools middle and high schoolers, alerting them to a fictitious new dress code that would require all students to wear uniforms.
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Executive editor: Tony Mecia; Managing editor: Cristina Bolling; Contributing editor: Tim Whitmire, CXN Advisory; Contributing photographer/videographer: Kevin Young, The 5 and 2 Project