Originally published on thecentersquare.com, part of the BLOX Digital Content Exchange. Bob Richards waves to the crowd after winning the pole vault gold medal at 1956 Summer Olympic Games in Melbourne, Australia, Nov. 26, 1956. Olympic-winning pole vaulter, pastor Bob Richards dies at 97. Feb. 28 (UPI) -- Bob Richards, the first person to win two Olympic pole vault gold medals and the first athlete to appear on the front of a Wheaties box, died at age 97 on Sunday. Share with Us. Waco's Bob Richards, the first person to win two Olympic gold medals in pole vaulting, died Sunday at age 97, his son Brandon confirmed in a social media post. The last UAW strike against Caterpillar was in 1994 and lasted 18 months. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. Some clouds. In 1970 he married Vonda Joan Beaird, an actress. Bob Richards, a two-time . accounts, the history behind an article. That distinction, as Richards acknowledged, belonged to Cornelius Warmerdam, a Californian who used bamboo poles to set world records of about 15 feet 8 inches in the early 1940s. Pole vaulter Rev. 1 pole vaulter. RICHARDS, Robert Eugene ("Bob") (b. Richards was interested in athletics from boyhood, participating in diving and tumbling before taking up the pole vault in junior high school. Bob Richards 1951.jpg 455 731; 156 KB. He won gold medals in pole vault in both 1952 and 1956, becoming the only male two-time champion in the event in Olympic history. Richards was elected to the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame in 1983, and to the U.S. National Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1975. INDIANAPOLIS, March 1 (UPI) -- Alabama linebacker Will Anderson Jr. and several other top pass rushers say they model their games after today's NFL stars. FILE - American pole vaulter Bob Richards, left, talks with Brazilian pole vaulter Helcio Buck-Silva during a break in a training session in Helsinki, July 11, 1952. Richards retired from athletics in 1957 and became a spokesman for Wheaties cereal. At the 1948 Olympic Games in London, he won a bronze medal, and he won his first gold medal at the 1952 Olympic Games in Helsinki, repeating this accomplishment at the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne. INDIANAPOLIS, Feb. 28 (UPI) -- The Atlanta Falcons released veteran quarterback Marcus Mariota, the team announced Tuesday. Bob Richards. Bob Richards, a two-time . Sportswriters called him "the Vaulting Vicar" because he was an ordained minister. Wrote Brandon Richards of his dad: "We lost a national treasure." He won a bronze medal in his first Olympic go-round, followed by back-to-back gold medals. 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Joe Dial ('81) and nephew Bruce Dial ('93) both ranked No. Richards did it for schools in 2 statesas a junior in Texas, then as a senior in California) All in the family: 4 great pairs are represented here, topped by Mondo and his father Greg, who ranked twice, including a No. He taught sociology at the University of Illinois in the late 1940s and later was a member of the faculty of La Verne College (California; now University of La Verne) as well as holding pulpits in the Church of the Brethren. He was 97. Illinois pole vaulting legend Bob Richards has passed away. He fared much better in his next two Olympic appearances. ', 'Saturday Night Live' skit with Woody Harrelson takes place at Naval Submarine Base New London, Los Charros Cantina closes in Essex, will relocate to Branford, Second winter storm could hit parts of CT Friday, National Weather Service says, Bo Hickey, former New Canaan hockey, football coach and NFL player, has died. Several of his children and grandchildren became competitive pole vaulters, surpassing his 15 feet 6 inches by several feet - though they werent vaulting with a metal pole. This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Bob-Richards, The Olympic Movement - Biography of Robert Richards. By then, Mr. Richards was hopscotching around the country delivering what would add up to more than 25,000 motivational speeches at sales conferences, awards dinners and corporate retreats. They each will now pursue consideration to be the No. Hospital food is a punchline. I bawled like a baby., In many ways, the Summer Olympics are the Halleys Comet of sporting events. Advertisement. With his wife by his side and his dog in his lap, Bob Richards sat on a couch in the Zero G Elite Pole Vault Club that's on his ranch in Waco. Richards also competed as a decathlete in the 1956 Olympics. Your current subscription does not provide access to this content. He became a pastor who went all around to give lectures, leading to a career as a motivational speaking. Staff report. INDIANAPOLIS (AP) Bob Richards, a two-time Olympic pole vault gold medalist who also became an ordained minister, died Sunday. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? ", Olympic pole vault champ Richards dies at 97, Companies charged in Tokyo Olympic bid-rigging, Serbia grabs last spot in Basketball World Cup, Olsen earns WC slalom win after Ginnis DQ'd, US Olympic Sailing Team executive director quits. In addition to the gold medals he won at the 1952 Olympics in Finland and the 1956 Games in Australia, Mr. Richards won 17 national pole vault championships and was ranked No. The school said in a release he held the ranking as the No. The two-time Olympic gold medalist was 97. The school said in a release he held the ranking as the No. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. In fact, as a youth Richards, the son of a broken home, had run with a gang of thieves and brawlers, and five of his friends went to prison for robbery. She died in 2019. Bob Richards of the US team eases over the bar to set a new record for the . Mayor Lori Lightfoot came in third and becomes the first elected Chicago mayor to lose a reelection bid since 1983, when Jane Byrne, the citys first female mayor, lost her Democratic primary. The third of five children, Robert Eugene Richards was born in Champaign, Ill., on Feb. 20, 1926. The two-time Olympic gold medalist was 97. Bob Richards, 97, pole-vaulting star, first champion on a Wheaties box. He earned a bachelors degree in 1947 and a masters in 1948. Bob Richards, the only male two-time winner of the Olympic pole vault, who in the 1950s became a hero of American Cold War competition with the Soviet Union and a breakfast-table hero to millions as the first champion on the front of the Wheaties box, died Sunday at his home in Waco, Texas. Packers await Rodgers' decision on future, cite potential contract restructuring. London 1948, bronze (pole vault) Helsinki 1952, gold (pole vault) Melbourne 1956, gold (pole vault) . Feb. 28 (UPI) -- Bob Richards, the first person to win two Olympic pole vault gold medals and the first athlete to appear on the front of a Wheaties box, died at age 97 on Sunday. Bob Richards. 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INDIANAPOLIS Bob Richards, a two-time Olympic pole vault gold medalist who also became an ordained minister, died Sunday. 1 pole vaulter, Geno Auriemma gives bleak assessment as UConn womens basketball looks to find footing in March: 'Poorly coached team. He started at quarterback for his high school football team. I was lucky to even place, Richards told the Tribune-Herald in a 2016 interview. ; a brother; and 31 grandchildren and great-grandchildren. His sons followed in his pole-vaulting footsteps. Be Truthful. Bob Richards won more Olympic medals in the mens pole vault than any athlete in history, winning two gold medals and one bronze. His daughter Tammy Richards LeSure confirmed the death but did not cite a specific cause. Robert Seagren (born October 17, 1946) is a retired American pole vaulter, the 1968 Olympic champion . Atlanta Falcons release QB Marcus Mariota. He was a three-time Olympic medalist and the first person to ever win two gold medals in the pole vault. Much has changed since Richards, a two-time Olympic pole vaulting champion, was Mr. Wheaties. 2023 University of Illinois Division of Intercollegiate Athletics. INDIANAPOLIS, Feb. 28 (UPI) -- The Green Bay Packers want to know Aaron Rodgers' 2023 playing plans within the next three weeks, but have not set a date to meet with the quarterback, general manager Brian Gutekunst said Tuesday in Indianapolis. He graduated from high school in 1943, and in 1944 he enrolled at the Brethren affiliated Bridgewater College in Virginia. Bob Richards Gold Medalist Monday, February 15, 2016, 7:30 p.m.. A two-time Olympic gold medalist in pole vaulting - and the first person ever to appear on a Wheaties cereal box - will be this year's speaker at the Hill College Alden J. Blanar Smith Speaker Series on Feb. 15 in the Vara Martin Daniel Performing Arts Center in Hillsboro. He was 97. Give directly to The Spokesman-Review's Northwest Passages community forums series -- which helps to offset the costs of several reporter and editor positions at the newspaper -- by using the easy options below. Bob Richards is a remarkable human being. His autobiography, Heart of a Champion, was published in 1959. He was 97. (renews at {{format_dollars}}{{start_price}}{{format_cents}}/month + tax). Get breaking news delivered to your inbox as it happens. But he escaped the street life into religion and athletics. His track and field legacy will endure, too. And the bigger your challenge, the bigger you become as a person. Sorry, there are no recent results for popular commented articles. He also appeared on a box of Wheaties cereal. "He was the greatest dad I could ever ask for and I will miss him dearly.". In his Facebook post, Brandon Richards said his father began reading the Bible and preaching as a way to overcome his stuttering. His sons followed in his pole-vaulting footsteps. 1 pole vaulter for eight consecutive years. But it also came to be known for the far-right extremist views of one its founders, Willis Carto, a Holocaust denier and neo-Nazi hero. In his day, he was considered the greatest pole vaulter in history. July 15, 2010. A native of Pomona, California, Seagren was one of the world's top pole vaulters in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Notifications from this discussion will be disabled. Richards was inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame in 1983 and the U.S. National Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1975. Bob Richards, the only male two-time winner of the Olympic pole vault, who in the 1950s became a hero of American Cold War competition with the Soviet Union and . While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. With the help of gynecologic oncology specialists at Providence, Amy beat cancerand found the courage to accomplish things shed never dreamed of. His son, Brandon, w Copyright 2023 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Wacos Bob Richards, the first person to win two Olympic gold medals in pole vaulting, died Sunday at age 97, his son Brandon confirmed in a social media post. 1 pole vaulter for eight consecutive years. He received the James E. Sullivan award in 1951 for outstanding amateur athlete. He was the second person ever to pole vault over 15 feet (4.6 metres), a feat he accomplished in 1947. Bob showed early abilities in basketball and was a pole-vaulter and a star quarterback at Champaign Central High School. The busy and popular local doughnut chain will move its operations from 8560 Main St. to 8010 Transit Road this spring. He was the greatest dad I could ever ask for and I will miss him dearly., AP sports: https://apnews.com/hub/sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports. In 1984, saying the country must work to get rid of these tyrants who rule us, he ran for president on the Populist Party ticket. Matt Ludwig (unat) 19- | 5.80: 5. Mike Harrington: His team looks good, even without Alex Tuch. Some clouds. 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