Finis Dean Smith (born January 15, 1932) is an American former

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 eve ...

athlete and stuntman, and winner of the gold medal in the 4 × 100 m relay 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 ...

. Born in

Breckenridge, Texas Breckenridge is a city in Stephens County, Texas, United States. The estimated population was 5,349 as of February 2021. It is the county seat of Stephens County. The mayor is Bob Sims. Breckenridge was a stop on the since defunct Wichita Fal ...

, Smith won the

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 h ...

championships in 100 m in

1952 Events January–February * January 26 – Black Saturday in Egypt: Rioters burn Cairo's central business district, targeting British and upper-class Egyptian businesses. * February 6 ** Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh, becomes m ...

. At the

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the capital, primate, and most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of Uusimaa in southern Finland, and has a population of . The city ...

Olympics, he was fourth in the 100 m and ran the leadoff leg for American gold medal winning 4 × 100 m relay team. As a sprinter on the Longhorn track team, Smith ran a 100-yard dash in 9.4 seconds, one tenth of a second off the

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 ...

at the time. After graduating from

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,07 ...

where he ran track and was a member of the Silver Spurs, Smith played professional football for the Los Angeles Rams and the Pittsburgh Steelers, but never played in a regular season game. After his sports career, Smith performed as a professional rodeo cowboy and stuntman in various

Western movie The Western is a genre set in the American frontier and commonly associated with folk tales of the Western United States, particularly the Southwestern United States, as well as Northern Mexico and Western Canada. It is commonly referred ...

s such as '' The Alamo'', '' The Comancheros'', '' How The West Was Won'', ''

McLintock! :''See also McClintock (disambiguation)'' ''McLintock!'' is a 1963 American Western comedy film, starring John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara, directed by Andrew V. McLaglen. The film co-stars Wayne's son Patrick Wayne, Stefanie Powers, Jack Kru ...

'', ''

Rio Conchos The Río Conchos (Conchos River) is a large river in the Mexican state of Chihuahua. It joins the Río Bravo del Norte (known in the United States as the Rio Grande) at the town of Ojinaga, Chihuahua. Description The Rio Conchos is the main rive ...

'', ''

Big Jake ''Big Jake'' is a 1971 American Technicolor Western film starring John Wayne, Richard Boone and Maureen O'Hara. The picture was the final film for George Sherman in a directing career of more than 30 years. It grossed $7.5 million in t ...

'', '' El Dorado'', and

Rio Lobo Rio or Río is the Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and Maltese word for "river". When spoken on its own, the word often means Rio de Janeiro, a major city in Brazil. Rio or Río may also refer to: Geography Brazil * Rio de Janeiro * Rio do Sul, a ...

. He also appeared in such Western TV shows as '' Tales of Wells Fargo'', ''

Maverick Maverick, Maveric or Maverik may refer to: History * Maverick (animal), an unbranded range animal, derived from U.S. cattleman Samuel Maverick Aviation * AEA Maverick, an Australian single-seat sportsplane design * General Aviation Design Burea ...

'', '' Gunsmoke'', '' Lawman'', '' Have Gun Will Travel'', '' The Iron Horse'' and ''

Walker, Texas Ranger ''Walker, Texas Ranger'' is an American action crime television series created by Leslie Greif and Paul Haggis. It was inspired by the film '' Lone Wolf McQuade'', with both this series and that film starring Chuck Norris as a member of the ...

''. Smith competed in amateur rodeo. His events were bareback bronc riding and calf roping. He won championships in both events. The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Associations made him an honorary member. He also participated in Reba McEntire's Pro Celebrity Rodeo in May 1997 in the team roping event. In 2006 he was inducted into the

Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame The Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame is a museum and hall of fame in Fort Worth, Texas, dedicated to the sport of rodeo. History This hall of fame was founded by Johnny Boren. Also contributing to the foundation were a group of Belton, Texas, bu ...

. In 2009 he was inducted into the National Multicultural Western Heritage Museum and Hall of Fame. He is also a member of the Texas Track and Field Coaches Association Hall of Fame. Smith is a member of the Hollywood Stuntman's Hall of Fame. In 1997 he was named " All American Cowboy" and in 1998 he received a

Golden Boot Award Golden means made of, or relating to gold. Golden may also refer to: Places United Kingdom *Golden, in the parish of Probus, Cornwall *Golden Cap, Dorset *Golden Square, Soho, London *Golden Valley, a valley on the River Frome in Gloucestershir ...

. In 2007 he received the Silver Spur award for his contributions as a stuntman in the film business.

Competition record

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Dean 1932 births Living people People from Breckenridge, Texas Track and field athletes from Texas American male sprinters American stunt performers Athletes (track and field) at the 1952 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1955 Pan American Games Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field Medalists at the 1952 Summer Olympics Bareback bronc riders Roping (rodeo) USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners Pan American Games track and field athletes for the United States