Dan O'Brien

Highlights

He won a 1996 Olympic Gold Medal and is recognized for being one of the best decathlon athletes in the 1990's

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O'Brien is one of the best decathlon athletes of the 1990s.

He grew up as an adopted child in an Irish-American family in Oregon. His athleticism was clear, in high school winning four state track titles his senior year and making all-state in football and basketball. He is an alumnus of the University of Idaho, where he competed in track and field, although not in the decathlon. His name is attached to the university's outdoor track and field venue, where he quietly trained for his Olympic and world championships under the aid of Idaho's track coach, Michael W. Keller.

In 1992, he avenged a no-height performance in the pole vault at the Olympic Trials - which kept him off the decathlon team - to set the world record later in the year. It was one of several challenges and misfortunes O'Brien has overcome: he admitted in 1994 that he had battled a drinking problem and that he was under medication for Attention Deficit Disorder. 

In 1992, O'Brien appeared with U.S. rival Dave Johnson in a popular TV advertising campaign for Reebok. The commercials entitled "Dan and Dave," were meant to build interest in Reebok and the decathletes, culminating in the 1992 Olympics. At the Olympic trials, O'Brien voluntarily passed on the lower heights in the pole vault, then failed in his first three attempts, resulting in no points for the event, and ultimately, did not qualify for the Olympics. His unexpected failure to qualify received enormous attention; Reebok adjusted by running new ads featuring him cheering on Dave, who did qualify.

He was awarded gold medals at the 1991, 1993, and 1995 World Championships in Athletics. He also won an Olympic gold medal for decathlon in the 1996 Summer Olympics. O'Brien has competed in one decathlon since 1996, winning the 1998 Goodwill Games. He is tied with Bill Toomey for the most nationals wins ever, at five.

In the late 1990s, Dan O'Brien appeared in ads for Italian designer Versace. He has co-authored the book "Overcoming the Odds" detailing how he overcame his battle with disabilities and setbacks to win an Olympic Gold Medal. Today, O'Brien resides in Arizona.

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