Brian Oldfield (June 1, 1945 – March 26, 2017) was an American athlete and personality of the 1970s and early 1980s. A standout shot putter, Oldfield was credited with making the rotational technique popular. With his "Oldfield spin," he set the indoor and outdoor world records in the sport many times. However, due to his status as a

professional athlete In professional sports, as opposed to amateur sports, participants receive payment for their performance. Professionalism in sport has come to the fore through a combination of developments. Mass media and increased leisure have brought larg ...

, and due to the lack of official control of his achievements by athletic authorities as well as later steroid-related investigations, his records were never officially recognized.

Life and career

Oldfield was born in

Elgin, Illinois Elgin ( ) is a city in Cook and Kane counties in the northern part of the U.S. state of Illinois. Elgin is located northwest of Chicago, along the Fox River. As of the 2020 Census, the city had a population of 114,797, the seventh-large ...

, and began his career at

Middle Tennessee State University Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU or MT) is a public university in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Founded in 1911 as a normal school, the university consists of eight Undergraduate education, undergraduate colleges as well as a college of Postgr ...

where he won the

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championship three times. The University recognized his achievements by inducting him into their athletic Hall of Fame in 2000. After holding several jobs, Oldfield set his sights on achieving stardom in the shot put as an Olympian. In 1972, he made the United States

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...

team, but finished in sixth place. He bounced back less than a year later by setting his first world record, with a throw of 21.60 m (70 ft 10½ in). However, this record was not official due to his affiliation with ITA professional track and field. In 1975, his throw of 22.86 m (75 ft) set another unofficial world record due to him being a professional, which at that time was not allowed. Though unofficial, Oldfield's accomplishment did not go unnoticed. After setting this mark, he had earned a cover spot on ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twi ...

'', and also made an appearance in a 1975 issue of ''

Playgirl ''Playgirl'' was an American magazine that featured general interest articles, lifestyle and celebrity news, in addition to nude or semi-nude men. In the 1970s and 1980s, the magazine printed monthly and was marketed mainly to women, although ...

''. In his ''Sports Illustrated'' interview, he confidently asserted that he expected to be throwing over 80 ft before 1980. In 1984, at age 38, he finally set an official record with a throw of 22.19 m (72 ft 9 in) to set a new American mark. When asked by a commentator how he was able to do it at the event, he responded, "I had a 'throw-gasm.'" But Oldfield was perhaps at least as well known for his unconventional persona and on-field antics as he was for his athletic performance. Unusual for track athletes at the time, he wore his hair long in a style he dubbed the "Oldfield Mop" and occasionally sported a beard. Oldfield would sometimes smoke cigarettes in between throws at competitions to show that he could beat anyone, even while smoking. He was known for wearing flamboyant outfits, including

tie-dye Tie-dye is a term used to describe a number of resist dyeing techniques and the resulting dyed products of these processes. The process of tie-dye typically consists of folding, twisting, pleating, or crumpling fabric or a garment, before binding ...

d shirts and

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-style shorts. These stunts served not only to raise Oldfield's profile, but frequently unnerved his opponents. At the 1972 United States Olympic Trials, an opponent was quoted as saying, "I will retire the day that I lose to someone like Brian Oldfield." Not surprising for the man who said in the September 1, 1975 ''

'' article about him, "When God created man, he wanted him to look like me." Oldfield competed in the

World's Strongest Man The World's Strongest Man is an international Strongman competition held every year. Organized by American event management company IMG, a subsidiary of Endeavor, it is broadcast in the US during summers and in the UK around the end of Decem ...

contest in 1978, finishing seventh in a field of ten competitors. He also competed in Scottish Highland Games in the 1970s. Utilizing his experience in the shot put, he set many field records in the

Stone put In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks form the Earth's o ...

. His career-best throw of 63 ft 2 in in the light stone, accomplished at Braemar,

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

, in 1973, was a world record until 2013. Oldfield also starred in the 1989 film ''Savage Instinct'', later renamed '' They Call Me Macho Woman!'' as Mongo, the crazed drug lord. In the film, Oldfield wears a special spiked headgear that his character uses to head-butt people to death. The movie was unsuccessful. Near the end of his life, injuries from his time in competition reduced the athlete to walking with a cane and using a wheelchair.

Death

Oldfield died on March 26, 2017, at his home in Elgin, aged 71.Olympic shot putter from Elgin, IL dies at 71
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References

External links

*
BrianOldfield.com

Brian Oldfield tribute video
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oldfield, Brian 1945 births 2017 deaths American male shot putters American strength athletes American masters athletes World record holders in masters athletics Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders men's track and field athletes Sportspeople from Elgin, Illinois Sportspeople from the Chicago metropolitan area Track and field athletes from Illinois Athletes (track and field) at the 1972 Summer Olympics Olympic track and field athletes of the United States