Robert ("Bob") Hudson Backus (July 11, 1926 – June 30, 1999) was an American track and field athlete who set world records in the hammer throw. He wore

ballet slippers A ballet shoe, or ballet slipper, is a lightweight shoe designed specifically for ballet dancing. It may be made from soft leather, canvas, or satin, and has flexible, thin full or split soles. Traditionally, women wear pink shoes and men wear wh ...

during competition and after using weight training to overcome the effects of

meningitis Meningitis is acute or chronic inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, collectively called the meninges. The most common symptoms are fever, headache, and neck stiffness. Other symptoms include confusion or ...

.Litsky, Frank
"Bob Backus Is Dead at 72; World's Best Weight Thrower"
'' The New York Times'', July 7, 1999. Accessed March 30, 2009. Backus was born on July 11, 1926 in Boston. At 6 feet, 5 inches in height and 160 pounds, Backus was rejected by the United States Army Air Forces' cadet program as he was deemed too thin. As part of his efforts to recover from spinal meningitis, Backus took up weight training and bulked up into a 290-pound strongman, despite concerns that such training would make him "musclebound". He attended Tufts University, where he started weight throwing, participating in the 16-pound hammer throw outdoors, and the 35 and 56 pound events indoors. Backus was inducted to the Tufts University's Hall of Fame. Because no footwear had yet been developed for the sport, Backus wore ballet shoes. Backus set a world record and career best of 45 feet 2 inches in the 56-pound throw at the New York Athletic Club's annual spring games, held on June 8, 1957 in Pelham Manor, New York, setting a record that broke a record he had previously set, adding another foot to the world mark. He also set a record in February 1959 for the 35-pound weight with a distance of 66 feet 2¾ inches, one of five world records set at the Amateur Athletic Union's national indoor track and field championships at

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...

. He won U.S. titles in the 56-pound event each of the seven years from 1953 to 1959 and won seven out of eight years from 1954 to 1961 in the 35-pound throw. He won the American title in the hammer throw in 1954 and won a gold medal in the event at the

1955 Pan American Games The 1955 Pan American Games opened on March 12, 1955, in the University Stadium (now Olympic Stadium) in Mexico City, Mexico, in front of a capacity crowd of 100,000 spectators. A total number of 2,583 athletes from 22 nations marched in review ...

in Mexico City. He competed in the event at the

1952 Summer Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics ( fi, Kesäolympialaiset 1952; sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1952), officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad ( fi, XV olympiadin kisat; sv, Den XV olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Helsinki 1952 ( sv, Helsin ...

, finishing in 13th place. July 1971 Backus (M40) competed at the 4th Annual Masters Outdoor National Championship placing 2nd to Howard Payne in the HT. March 1975 Backus (M45) competed in the Annual Masters Indoor National Championship and winning the WT. Backus held American Masters M45 and M50 Indoor Weight Throw Records (1976 and 1977). Backus held the American Masters M50 16-Lb Hammer Throw Record in 1977. Backus held the World Masters M55 16-Lb Hammer Throw Record in 1981. In February 1978, a 51-year-old Backus came in second in an otherwise uneventful 35-pound weight throw at the Open AAU National Indoor Championship held at Madison Square Garden.Amdur, Neil
"McTear Takes Dash in 6.04 For World Indoor Record; Livers Takes Triple Jump Title at 55-3 Coghlan, Miss Larrieu Win 440 Star Upset McTear Runs 6.04 in Dash For World Indoor Mark Tanzanian Beats Liquori"
'' The New York Times'', February 25, 1978. Accessed March 30, 2009. Backus died at age 72 on June 30, 1999 at Boston's Vencor Hospital, having suffered a

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

in December 1998 and been in poor health for several years before his death. His first marriage, to

Elsa Torikka Elsa Backus (; born 19 December 1930) is a Finnish athlete. She competed in the women's javelin throw at the 1952 Summer Olympics. Torikka was married to American hammer thrower Bob Backus Robert ("Bob") Hudson Backus (July 11, 1926 – June ...

of Finland, who he had met at the

in Helsinki where she had competed in the

javelin A javelin is a light spear designed primarily to be thrown, historically as a ranged weapon, but today predominantly for sport. The javelin is almost always thrown by hand, unlike the sling, bow, and crossbow, which launch projectiles with th ...

, ended in divorce.

References

Added: {{DEFAULTSORT:Backus, Bob 1926 births 1999 deaths Male weight throwers American male hammer throwers Olympic track and field athletes of the United States Athletes (track and field) at the 1952 Summer Olympics Pan American Games track and field athletes for the United States Pan American Games medalists in athletics (track and field) Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States Athletes (track and field) at the 1955 Pan American Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1959 Pan American Games World record setters in athletics (track and field) Tufts University alumni Track and field athletes from Boston Medalists at the 1955 Pan American Games Medalists at the 1959 Pan American Games American masters athletes