Brian Oldfield

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Brian Ray Oldfield (born June 1, 1945 in Elgin , Illinois ; † March 26, 2017 there ) was an American athlete who improved the world record in the shot put several times in the 1970s .

Life

Brian Oldfield was an Illinois junior shot put champion in 1963 as a student at Elgin High School . This gave him a college scholarship to Middle Tennessee State University and continued to improve. He completed his studies with a sports teacher exam ( Bachelor of Arts ). Since he had already reached 18.03 m, he now devoted more time to training. According to the American amateur conditions at the time, however, he was not allowed to work as a sports teacher or trainer . In 1968 he was only eighth in the American championships with 18.65 m, and in the discus throw he did not reach the final with 55.90 m. As a good discus thrower, however, he now successfully switched his shot put technique from the angle technique to the turning technique , which was invented by the Russian Alexander Baryshnikov , which is why it is mostly called Baryshnikov technique in Europe , but Oldfield was the first in the United States, so it is here to this day the Oldfield Spin is called.

In 1969 he was fourth in the American Championships in the shot put with 19.68 m and he also showed a constant performance in the discus throw with 56.03 m. He underlined his performance range in 1971 with a decathlon with 5750 points, 100 meters in 10.5 s and 1.98 m in the high jump , 64.10 m in the javelin throw and 64.86 m in the hammer throw . In 1972 he was with 20.97 m third in the American championships and sixth in the Olympic Games . He was also sixth in the United States with 61.10 m in the discus throw. As a result, Oldfield joined the International Track Association as one of the attractions as a professional athlete of professional athletics . With 21.61 m he pushed further than the existing world record in 1973. His performances in 1975 and 1976 would have led to first place in the amateur world rankings, where he again surpassed the amateur world record in 1975 with 22.86 m. With 62.25 m, he also outbid his best performance in the javelin throw in 1975.

Even after the end of the ITA, Oldfield continued and was extremely successful in Scotland at the Highland Games , in competitions for the strongest man in the world and as a wrestler . He was the sparring partner of Muhammad Ali . It was not until 1980 that it was amateurized . In 32 competitions he hit over 21 m. With 21.81 m he qualified as American champion in 1980 for the Olympic Games (thus 3rd place in the world rankings), but the Olympic boycott lost his Olympic chance. With 22.17 m he set a new American amateur record in 1984, but he could not take part in the Olympic Games as a former professional. With 21.41 m from 1985 he still holds the age class world record for over 40s in 2016 .

Oldfield worked as a throwing coach at Lake Park High School and Taylor University . He was 1.95 m tall and had a competition weight of 127 kg and was known by the nickname "The Big O". Since 2000 he had undergone 16 operations due to the immense strength training and use of anabolic steroids and moved with a stick or a wheelchair.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Hall of famer, track great Oldfield passes at age 71. Middle Tennessee State University , March 27, 2017, accessed March 28, 2017 .
  2. ↑ Brian Oldfield in the Munzinger Archive , accessed on March 28, 2017 ( beginning of article freely available).
  3. ^ Brian Oldfield . Bodytechusa.com, accessed June 21, 2016.
  4. ^ Arnd Krüger : American sport between isolationism and internationalism. In: Leistungssport 18, 1988, ( pp. 43–47 ; pp. 47–50, ) accessed on March 28, 2017 (English).
  5. ^ Brian R. Oldfield, Plaintiff Appellant, v. The Athletic Congress, US Olympic Committee & Don Miller […], James Carnes, […], Ollan C. Cassell. No. 84-2814. United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, heard on November 14, 1985, ruled on December 26, 1985, accessed on March 28, 2017 ( brianoldfield.com PDF; 104 kB, English).
  6. ^ Brian Oldfield - Throwing Chronology . Brian Oldfield's website, May 20, 2016, accessed March 28, 2017.
  7. ↑ John Keilman: Oldfield down - but not for the count. In: Tribune . July 14, 2006, accessed on March 28, 2017 ( brianoldfield.com PDF; 586 kB, English).
personal data
SURNAME Oldfield, Brian
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Oldfield, Brian Ray; The Big O (nickname)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American athlete
DATE OF BIRTH June 1, 1945
PLACE OF BIRTH Elgin , Illinois , United States
DATE OF DEATH March 26, 2017
Place of death Elgin , Illinois , United States