Walter Harrison ("Ben") Plucknett (April 13, 1954 in

Beatrice, Nebraska Beatrice () is a city in and the county seat of Gage County, Nebraska, United States. Its population was 12,459 at the 2010 census. Beatrice is located approximately 25 miles south of Lincoln on the Big Blue River and is surrounded by agricultu ...

– November 17, 2002 in

Essex, Missouri Essex is a city in Stoddard County, Missouri, United States. The population was 472 at the 2010 census. History Essex was platted in 1873 as a stop along the Missouri Pacific Railroad, and named after one Mr. Essex, a railroad official. A post ...

) was an American

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

athlete, known primarily for the

discus throw The discus throw (), also known as disc throw, is a track and field event in which an athlete throws a heavy disk (mathematics), disc—called a discus—in an attempt to mark a farther distance than their competitors. It is an classical antiqui ...

. Plucknett qualified for the 1980 U.S. Olympic team but was unable to compete due to the

1980 Summer Olympics boycott The 1980 Summer Olympics boycott was one part of a number of actions initiated by the United States to protest against the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. The Soviet Union, which hosted the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, and its allies later ...

. He did however receive one of 461

Congressional Gold Medal The Congressional Gold Medal is an award bestowed by the United States Congress. It is Congress's highest expression of national appreciation for distinguished achievements and contributions by individuals or institutions. The congressional pract ...

s created especially for the spurned athletes. In 1981, he broke the existing

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...

with a throw of 233'7", and broke the record again with a throw of 72.34 m (237'4") on July 7, 1981. However, on July 13, 1981, the

International Association of Athletics Federations World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation (from 1912 to 2001) and International Association of Athletics Federations (from 2001 to 2019, both abbreviated as the IAAF) is the international governing body for ...

banned Plucknett from further competition after he had tested positive for

anabolic steroid Anabolic steroids, also known more properly as anabolic–androgenic steroids (AAS), are steroidal androgens that include natural androgens like testosterone (medication), testosterone as well as synthetic androgens that are structurally related ...

use, and the records were removed. Even though he was stripped of his World Record breaking throws the IAAF still recognizes his throw of 71.32m (233' 11.87") thrown on June 4, 1983, in Eugene, Oregon as the current North American record. He died at the age of 48 due to a

brain aneurysm An intracranial aneurysm, also known as a brain aneurysm, is a cerebrovascular disorder in which weakness in the wall of a cerebral artery or vein causes a localized dilation or ballooning of the blood vessel. Aneurysms in the posterior circul ...

on his farm. In 1983 Plucknett

bench-press The bench press, or chest press, is a weight training exercise in which the trainee presses a weight upwards while lying on a weight training bench. Although the bench press is a full-body exercise, the muscles primarily used are the pectorali ...

ed 623 lbs.

References

Obituary

External links

* * 1954 births 2002 deaths People from Beatrice, Nebraska Sportspeople from Nebraska American male discus throwers American sportspeople in doping cases Doping cases in athletics University of Missouri alumni Congressional Gold Medal recipients {{US-discusthrow-athletics-bio-stub