Dean Smith (sprinter)

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This article is about the American athlete. For other uses, see Dean Smith (disambiguation).
Dean Smith
Dean smith 2013.jpg
Smith at the 2013 Texas Book Festival
Personal information
Full nameFinis Dean Smith
BornJanuary 15, 1932 (1932-01-15) (age 89)
Breckenridge, Texas, U.S.
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Medal record
Men's athletics
Representing the  United States
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1952 Helsinki 4x100 m relay

Finis Dean Smith (born January 15, 1932) is an American former track and field athlete and stuntman, and winner of the gold medal in the 4 × 100 m relay at the 1952 Summer Olympics.[1]

Born in Breckenridge, Texas, Smith won the Amateur Athletic Union championships in 100 m in 1952. At the Helsinki Olympics, he was fourth in the 100 m and ran the leadoff leg for American gold medal winning 4 × 100 m relay team. As a sprinter on the Longhorn track team, Smith ran a 100-yard dash in 9.4 seconds, one tenth of a second off the world record at the time.

After graduating from University of Texas at Austin where he ran track and was a member of the Silver Spurs, Smith played professional football for the Los Angeles Rams and the Pittsburgh Steelers, but never played in a regular season game. After his sports career, Smith performed as a professional rodeo cowboy and stuntman in various Western movies such as The Alamo, The Comancheros, How The West Was Won, McLintock!, Rio Conchos, Big Jake, and El Dorado. He also appeared in such Western TV shows as Tales of Wells Fargo, Maverick, Gunsmoke, Lawman, Have Gun Will Travel, The Iron Horse and Walker, Texas Ranger.

Smith competed in amateur rodeo. His events were bareback bronc riding and calf roping.[2] He won championships in both events.[2] The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Associations made him an honorary member.[2] He also participated in Reba McEntire's Pro Celebrity Rodeo in May 1997 in the team roping event.[3]

In 2006 he was inducted into the Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame.[4] In 2009 he was inducted into the National Multicultural Western Heritage Museum and Hall of Fame.[5] He is also a member of the Texas Track and Field Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

Smith is a member of the Hollywood Stuntman's Hall of Fame.[6] In 1997 he was named "" and in 1998 he received a Golden Boot Award.[7] In 2007 he received the Silver Spur award[8] for his contributions as a stuntman in the film business.

Competition record[]

Year Competition Venue Position Event Notes
Representing  United States
1952 Olympics Helsinki, Finland 4th 100 m 10.84/10.4

References[]

  1. ^ Dean Smith at Sports Reference
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Dean Smith". IMDb. Retrieved 2017-04-30.
  3. ^ "Reba McEntire Pro Celebrity Rodeo". NewsOK.com. 1997-05-11. Retrieved 2017-04-30.
  4. ^ Software, Bengal. "Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame: Past Inductees". www.texasrodeocowboy.com. Retrieved 2017-04-22.
  5. ^ "National Cowboys of Color Museum and Hall of Fame - Dallas/Ft. Worth". www.cowboysofcolor.org. Retrieved 2017-04-30.
  6. ^ "Hollywood Stuntman's Hall Of Fame- Members". www.stuntmen.org. Retrieved 2017-04-30.
  7. ^ "Golden Boot Awards". www.goldenbootawards.com. Retrieved 2017-04-30.
  8. ^ N.Ellen Sonnabend (2012-09-16), Dean Smith's Acceptance Speech Silver Spur Awards 2007, retrieved 2017-04-30

External links[]

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