Paul Boulet Jessup (September 23, 1908 – October 27, 1992) was an American discus thrower and

shot put The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. The shot put competition for men has been a part of the modern Olympics since their revival in 1896, and women's ...

ter. He set a discus world record in 1930 and was a leading favorite for the

1932 Summer Olympics The 1932 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the X Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1932) were an international multi-sport event held from July 30 to August 14, 1932 in Los Angeles, California, United States. The Games were held duri ...

, but only placed eighth in the Olympic final.

Career

Competing for the University of Washington Huskies, Jessup placed fourth at the 1929 NCAA Championships in both the shot and the discus. He was also the captain of the Washington

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team, playing

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and defensive center. Jessup improved further in 1930, setting his personal bests that year. In an early dual meet against

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

, he threw the discus 48.23 meters (158 ft in) and was only narrowly beaten by Stanford's world record holder

Eric Krenz Eric Christian William Krenz (May 7, 1906 – August 18, 1931) was an American shot putter and discus thrower. Krenz set two world records in the discus and was considered a favorite for the 1932 Summer Olympics, but his career was cut short when ...

. At the 1930 NCAA Championships Jessup went one better by surprisingly beating Krenz; nevertheless, Krenz was selected by coaches as top All-American ahead of Jessup. Jessup won his first national championship in the discus in August 1930, beating Krenz's world record in the process with a throw of 51.73 meters (169 ft in). This record lasted until 1934, when it was beaten by

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

Harald Andersson Harald "Slaktarn" Andersson (2 April 1907 – 18 May 1985) was a Swedish discus thrower. In 1934 he won a European title Jessup repeated as national champion in 1931. Jessup showed consistent form in early 1932 and was considered the leading favorite for the

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...

in Los Angeles, as his main rival, Krenz, had drowned in a boating accident in August 1931. However,

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly proving the existence of DNA. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris Bazhanov, J ...

Olympian

John Anderson John Anderson may refer to: Business *John Anderson (Scottish businessman) (1747–1820), Scottish merchant and founder of Fermoy, Ireland * John Byers Anderson (1817–1897), American educator, military officer and railroad executive, mentor of ...

displaced him as the national leader at the Eastern Tryouts. At the final

Olympic Trials 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 bet ...

Jessup placed second, behind Anderson. Anderson went on to win the gold medal at the

Olympics The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...

, while Jessup had an off day, only managing 8th with a throw of 45.25 m (148 ft 4 in).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jessup, Paul 1908 births 1992 deaths American male shot putters American male discus throwers Athletes (track and field) at the 1932 Summer Olympics Sportspeople from Bellingham, Washington University of Washington alumni Washington Huskies men's track and field athletes Washington Huskies football players Olympic track and field athletes of the United States Players of American football from Washington (state)