Decathlon, Men

Though Bob Mathias had been the upset winner in 1948, by 1952 he was dominant in the decathlon and a heavy favorite. He was now undefeated in nine career decathlons, and had set world records in 1950 and at the 1952 AAU/Olympic Trials. The US team also included the 1948 bronze medalist, Floyd “Chunk” Simmons, and an 18-year-old high schooler, Milt Campbell, who finished second at the Olympic Trials in his first career decathlon.

The Americans swept the medals, with Campbell second and Simmons repeating his bronze medal effort. But the 1952 Olympic decathlon was simply a coronation for Mathias, who became the first man to defend the decathlon gold medal. In the process, he broke his own world record, and defeated Campbell by over 900 points.

Mathias effectively retired after Helsinki, although he returned in 1956 to win a military decathlon, ending his career undefeated in 11 competitions. Mathias was also a star football player at Stanford, competing in the Rose Bowl. He later had a brief Hollywood career, and then served three terms in the U.S. House of Representatives.