Parry O'Brien

Medal record
Men's Athletics
Competitor for the United States
Olympic Games
Gold	1952 Helsinki	Shot put
Gold	1956 Melbourne	Shot put
Silver	1960 Rome	Shot put
Pan American Games
Gold	1955 Mexico City	Shot put
Gold	1959 Chicago	Shot put

William Parry O'Brien, Jr. (January 28, 1932 – April 21, 2007) was an American shot put champion. Born in Santa Monica, California, he competed in four consecutive Summer Olympics where he won two gold medals (1952, 1956) and one silver medal (1960). In his last Olympic competition (1964) he placed fourth. For this, he is inducted in the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame.

Biography

O'Brien was very active in sports at Santa Monica High School, playing End on the team that won the State Championship in 1948 and with it he procured a football scholarship to the University of Southern California. He won the (non-standard) 16 pound shot put competition at the 1949 CIF California State Meet. He also finished third that year with the conventional high school 12 pound shot.

He went on to USC, where he continued to play football as a freshman until he was kicked in the stomach. He decided to focus his efforts into track and field. He was known for being so dedicated, he would jump the fence to practice at night.

In the early 1950s, O'Brien developed a new method for putting the 16-pound shot. The Los Angeles Times described it:

When O'Brien began throwing the shot, the standard method was to rock back on one leg, swing the other in front for balance, hop forward and propel the iron ball forward. O'Brien instead began by facing the back of the circle. He then turned 180 degrees, using the spin to generate momentum and help him throw the shot greater distances.

Using this method he was able to break the world record 17 times, become the first person to put the 16-pound shot more than 60 feet, and win 116 consecutive competitions. This method became known as "O'Brien Style" or the "O'Brien Glide." He held the world record from 1953 to 1959 During his career he won 18 Amateur Athletic Union championships, 17 in the shotput and one in the discus. He won nine consecutive national indoor shotput titles and won eight overall outdoors, including five in a row.

As a competitor, in addition to developing new techniques for the shotput, he also made motivational tapes for himself, and experimented with Yoga. Time magazine, in a cover story written during the week before the Melbourne Olympics, noted "None has been more successful than O'Brien in combining what he calls "M.A." (mental attitude) and "P.A." (physical aptitude)." He was the first man to retain his Olympic shot put title since Ralph Rose in 1904 and 1908. In the 1960 Olympics he won a silver.

In 1964, he was the flag bearer for the U.S. Olympic team at the Tokyo Games.

O'Brien was inducted into USA Track and Field's Hall of Fame in 1974, the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame in 1984 and USC's Athletic Hall of Fame in 1994.

He remained active in masters athletics throwing a 6 Kg. shot put 58'1½" (17.72 m) at age 50 in 1984. That mark, two feet superior to the listed American Masters record in that age division is still pending.

O'Brien died of a heart attack in the 50-meter pool at the Santa Clarita Aquatics club during the Southern Pacific Masters Association regional swimming competition. He was 75 years old.

External links

• O'Brien rzutyiskoki.pl
• USATF Hall of Fame
• Watman, Mel (25 April 2007). "Parry O’Brien, two-time Olympic Shot Put champion, dies at 75". IAAF. http://www.iaaf.org/news/Kind=2/newsId=38455.html. Retrieved 2007-04-26. 

Olympic Games
Preceded by Rafer Johnson	Flagbearer for United States Tokyo 1964	Succeeded by Janice Romary
Records
Preceded by Jim Fuchs	Men's Shot Put World Record Holder May 9, 1953 – March 28, 1959	Succeeded by Dallas Long
Preceded by Dallas Long	Men's Shot Put World Record Holder August 1, 1959 – March 5, 1960	Succeeded by Dallas Long