Voting Station

Bob Mathias

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Athlete

The Resume

    (November 17, 1930-September 2, 2006)
    Born in Tulare, California
    Won the decathlon in the 1948 (London) and 1952 (Helsinki) Summer Olympics
    Received the 1948 Sullivan Award as the top amateur athlete in the U.S.
    Elected to serve four terms (R-CA) in the U.S. House of Representatives (1967-75)
    Acted in 'The Bob Mathias Story (1954),' 'China Doll (1958),' 'Minotaur, the Wild Beast of Crete 1960)' and 'It Happened in Athens (1962)'
    Director of the U.S. Olympic Training Center (1977-1985)
    Died of cancer in Fresno, CA at age 75

Why he might be annoying:

    His mother was hoping for a girl (having a son previously), and cried when he was born a boy.
    Asked how he planned to celebrate his 1948 Olympic victory, he replied, 'I'll start shaving, I guess.'
    As a fullback for Stanford University his team lost the 1952 Rose Bowl to the University of Illinois 40-7.
    He was drafted by the Washington Redskins, but never signed and never played in the pros.
    He was part of Gerald Ford's unsuccessful 1976 presidential election bid.

Why he might not be annoying:

    As a child he suffered from anemia.
    He served in the United States Marine Corps.
    In 1948, at age 17, he was the youngest track & field athlete to win a gold medal.
    He was the first to win back-to-back decathlons.
    He was the first athlete to compete in a Rose Bowl and an Olympics the same year (1952).
    As a charter member he was inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame (1983).
    He once said of games canceled due to World War II, 'Years ago, in the days of the Greeks, wars were postponed to make room for the Olympic Games. In modern times, the Games have been postponed twice - to make room for wars.'

Credit: Scar Tactics


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 6 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 6 Votes: 16.67% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 8 Votes: 62.50% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 7 Votes: 28.57% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 23 Votes: 47.83% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 7 Votes: 42.86% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 3 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 3 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 6 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 15 Votes: 53.33% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 16 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 73 Votes: 52.05% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 96 Votes: 47.92% Annoying
    In 2010, Out of 44 Votes: 47.73% Annoying
    In 2009, Out of 34 Votes: 44.12% Annoying