Robert Eugene Richards (born February 20, 1926) is an American retired athlete, minister, and politician. He made three
U.S. Olympic Teams in two events: the
1948,
1952, and
1956 Summer Olympics
The 1956 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, from 22 November to 8 December 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, whi ...
as a
pole vault
Pole vaulting, also known as pole jumping, is a track and field event in which an athlete uses a long and flexible pole, usually made from fiberglass or carbon fiber, as an aid to jump over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the Myc ...
er and as a
decathlete
The decathlon is a combined event in athletics consisting of ten track and field events. The word "decathlon" was formed, in analogy to the word "pentathlon", from Greek δέκα (''déka'', meaning "ten") and ἄθλος (''áthlos'', or ἄθ ...
in 1956.
He won gold medals in pole vault in both 1952 and 1956, becoming the only male two-time champion in the event in Olympic history.
While still an active athlete, Richards became an ordained minister. He ran for
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
in 1984 on the
Populist Party ticket.
Athletic career
Richards was the second man to pole vault 15 ft (4.57 m). While a student at the
University of Illinois
The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the University ...
, Richards tied for the national collegiate pole vault title and followed that with 20 national
Amateur Athletic Union
The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It has ...
(AAU) titles, including 17 in the pole vault and three in the decathlon.
[THE REV. BOB RICHARDS POLE VAULT-DECATHLON (Inducted 1975)](_blank)
USATF[USA Indoor Track & Field Champions. Men's Pole Vault](_blank)
USATF The first man to clear 15 feet was
Dutch Warmerdam
Cornelius "Dutch" Warmerdam (June 22, 1915 – November 13, 2001) was an American pole vaulter who held the world record between 1940 and 1957. He missed the Olympics due to World War II, and retired from senior competitions in 1944, though he co ...
, who set the world record of in 1942, long before Richards came into his prime. While Richards was the dominant vaulter of his time, he never set a world record.
Richards later became involved in promoting physical fitness and continued to vault in his later years. He was the first athlete to appear on the front of
Wheaties
Wheaties is an American brand of breakfast cereal that is made by General Mills. It is well known for featuring prominent athletes on its packages and has become a cultural icon in the United States. Originally introduced as Washburn's Gold Meda ...
cereal boxes in 1958 (though not the first depicted on all parts of the packaging), and also was the first
Wheaties
Wheaties is an American brand of breakfast cereal that is made by General Mills. It is well known for featuring prominent athletes on its packages and has become a cultural icon in the United States. Originally introduced as Washburn's Gold Meda ...
spokesman, setting up the Wheaties Sports Federation, which encouraged participation in Olympic sports. Richards had four sons who were also pole vaulters:
Brandon
Brandon may refer to:
Names and people
*Brandon (given name), a male given name
*Brandon (surname), a surname with several different origins
Places
Australia
*Brandon, a farm and 19th century homestead in Seaham, New South Wales
*Brandon, Q ...
, held the national high school record at 18'2" for fourteen years from 1985; Tom won the
CIF California State Meet in 1988; Bob, Junior was second in the same meet in 1968 and later ranked #7 in the US in 1973.
Richards is the only male two-time Olympic gold medal winner in the pole vault (1952 and 1956), thus he is also the only man to successfully defend his Olympic title. He also won a bronze medal in the pole vault in 1948. Russian
Yelena Isinbayeva
Yelena Gadzhievna Isinbayeva ( rus, Елена Гаджиевна Исинбаева, p=jɪˈlʲɛnə gɐˈdʐɨjɪvnə ɪsʲɪnˈbajɪvə; born 3 June 1982) is a Russian former pole vaulter. She is a two-time Olympic gold medalist (2004 and 20 ...
is the only other pole vaulter besides Richards to have won three Olympic medals, which she completed in 2012. Richards placed 13th in the decathlon at the 1956 Olympics.
Richards was elected to the
U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame in 1983 and the United States
National Track and Field Hall of Fame
The National Track and Field Hall of Fame is a museum operated by The Armory Foundation in conjunction with USA Track & Field. It is located within the Armory Foundation (the former Fort Washington Avenue Armory) at 216 Fort Washington Avenue, ...
in 1975. As he aged, Richards continued participating in
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 ...
in a variety of events, particularly throwing events. He was one of the first regular participants in the origins of what now has become
Masters athletics
Masters athletics is a class of the sport of athletics for athletes of over 35 years of age. The events include track and field, road running and cross country running. Competitors are bracketed into five-year age groups (which promotes fair comp ...
.
Richards appeared on the panel game show ''
What's My Line?
''What's My Line?'' is a panel game show that originally ran in the United States on the CBS Television Network from 1950 to 1967, originally in black and white and later in color, with subsequent U.S. revivals. The game uses celebrity panelis ...
'' episode #346 January 20, 1957.
Ministry
![Robert E](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/57/Robert_E._Richards.jpg)
He was ordained in 1946 as a minister in the
Church of the Brethren
The Church of the Brethren is an Anabaptist Christian denomination in the Schwarzenau Brethren (german: link=no, Schwarzenauer Neutäufer "Schwarzenau New Baptists") tradition that was organized in 1708 by Alexander Mack in Schwarzenau, Germa ...
(which led to his being nicknamed the "Vaulting Vicar" or the "Pole Vaulting Parson"). As future tennis player
Billie Jean King
Billie Jean King (née Moffitt; born November 22, 1943) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. King won 39 major titles: 12 in singles, 16 in women's doubles, and 11 in mixed doubles. King was a member of the victorious United States ...
's church minister, Richards inspired King. One day, when King was 13 or 14, Richards asked her, "What are you going to do with your life?" She said: "Reverend, I'm going to be the best tennis player in the world." In 1957 the actor
Hal Stalmaster played Richards as a teenager in an episode of the
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
anthology series
An anthology series is a radio, television, video game or film series that spans different genres and presents a different story and a different set of characters in each different episode, season, segment, or short. These usually have a differ ...
''
Cavalcade of America
''Cavalcade of America'' is an anthology drama series that was sponsored by the DuPont Company, although it occasionally presented musicals, such as an adaptation of ''Show Boat'', and condensed biographies of popular composers. It was initially ...
''.
Political career
In the
1984 United States presidential election
The 1984 United States presidential election was the 50th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on Tuesday, November 6, 1984. Incumbent Republican President Ronald Reagan defeated Democratic former Vice President Walter Mondale, in a ...
, Richards ran for
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
on the far-right, white nationalist
Populist Party ticket. He and running mate
Maureen Salaman earned 66,324 votes.
Awards
Richards was inducted as a Laureate of
The Lincoln Academy of Illinois
The Lincoln Academy of Illinois is a not-for-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to recognizing contributions made by living Illinoisans. Named for Abraham Lincoln, the Academy administers the ''Order of Lincoln'', the highest award given ...
and awarded the Order of Lincoln (the State's highest honor) by the Governor of Illinois in 2000 in the area of Sports. Richards is referenced in the
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
''
30 for 30
''30 for 30'' is the title for a series of documentary films airing on ESPN, its sister networks, and online highlighting interesting people and events in sports history. This includes three "volumes" of 30 episodes each, a 13-episode series un ...
''
documentary "Survive and Advance", for the impact he had on former
N.C. State
North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest u ...
coach
Jim Valvano
James Thomas Anthony Valvano (March 10, 1946 – April 28, 1993), nicknamed Jimmy V, was an American college basketball player, coach, and broadcaster.
Valvano had a successful coaching career with multiple schools, most notably at North Carolin ...
. Valvano cites hearing Richards speak when he was a teen and the
motivational
Motivation is the reason for which humans and other animals initiate, continue, or terminate a behavior at a given time. Motivational states are commonly understood as forces acting within the agent that create a disposition to engage in goal-dire ...
messages he implored. Bob was inducted into the National Fitness Hall of Fame in 2009 and was inducted into the Texas Track and Field Coaches Association Hall of Fame - (Class of 2017).
Inductees – Name, Category, Year
. TX TF Hall of Fame
See also
*List of athletes on Wheaties boxes
In 1934, the breakfast cereal Wheaties began the practice of including pictures of athletes on its packaging to coincide with its slogan, "The Breakfast of Champions." In its original form, athletes were depicted on the sides or back of the ce ...
References
External links
*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Richards, Bob
1926 births
20th-century American politicians
20th-century far-right politicians in the United States
American male pole vaulters
American members of the Church of the Brethren
American Freedom Party politicians
Athletes (track and field) at the 1948 Summer Olympics
Athletes (track and field) at the 1951 Pan American Games
Athletes (track and field) at the 1952 Summer Olympics
Athletes (track and field) at the 1955 Pan American Games
Athletes (track and field) at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Church of the Brethren clergy
Illinois Fighting Illini men's track and field athletes
James E. Sullivan Award recipients
Living people
American masters athletes
Medalists at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 1952 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 1948 Summer Olympics
Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in track and field
Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field
Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States
Pan American Games silver medalists for the United States
People from Palo Pinto County, Texas
Populist Party (United States, 1984) politicians
Sportspeople from Champaign, Illinois
Track and field athletes from Illinois
Candidates in the 1984 United States presidential election
Pan American Games medalists in athletics (track and field)
American white supremacists
Medalists at the 1951 Pan American Games
Medalists at the 1955 Pan American Games