The O'Brien Glide

No Mas bids farewell to Parry O'Brien, one of the great American Olympians of all time, a man who singlehandedly revolutionized his event, the shot-put. O'Brien died of a heart attack this past Saturday. He was 75 years old, and the attack he suffered occurred midway through a 500m freestyle swim race. All deaths are sad without question, but somehow, going out at the age of 75 while in deep pursuit of your undying thirst for competition seems a most vigorous, manly and life-affirming way to die. We raise our glasses to you, Parry.

Lest you be unfamiliar with his work, O'Brien was the author of the "O'Brien Glide," a complete 180-degree spin before putting the shot. Prior to O'Brien's innovation, shot-putters did not spin at all, but merely propelled themselves from the back of the ring to the front with a giant hop and put the shot with a single twist of the torso. The "O'Brien Glide" changed the shot-put event forever (athletes now spin several times before the put), and brought O'Brien himself immense success. Between 1953 and 1960 he broke the world record 17 times, raising the record during that period from 59 feet 3/4 inches to 63-3. He won three Olympic medals, two silvers and a gold, and in 1959 won the Sullivan Award as the outstanding amateur athlete in the U.S. He is a member of both the U.S. Track and Field Hall of Fame and the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame.