Robert 'Bob' Boyd Weir (born 4 February 1961 in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...

) is a male retired

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

athlete, best known as a

discus throw The discus throw (), also known as disc throw, is a track and field event in which an athlete throws a heavy disc—called a discus—in an attempt to mark a farther distance than their competitors. It is an ancient sport, as demonstrated by th ...

er, who was a twelve-time national champion. Weir also achieved success in

hammer throw The hammer throw is one of the four throwing events in regular track and field competitions, along with the discus throw, shot put and javelin. The "hammer" used in this sport is not like any of the tools also called by that name. It consist ...

, winning Commonwealth Games gold in 1982, and competed in

strongman In the 19th century, the term strongman referred to an exhibitor of strength or similar circus performers who performed feats of strength. More recently, strength athletics, also known as strongman competitions, have grown in popularity. Thes ...

competitions. His daughter, Jillian Weir, representing Canada, won bronze in the women's hammer at the

2022 Commonwealth Games The 2022 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XXII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Birmingham 2022, was an international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth of Nations that took place in Birmingham, England bet ...

in Birmingham, England, emulating her father's achievement 20 years before.

Education

Weir attended

Handsworth Grammar School King Edward VI Handsworth Grammar School for Boys, formerly and commonly Handsworth Grammar School, is a grammar school that admits boys from the age of eleven (as well as girls in the sixth form, since September 1997). The school was founded i ...

in Birmingham. Weir studied at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas attaining a degree in Business Studies in 1983.

Athletics career

His personal best throw was 65.08 metres, achieved in August 2000 in

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...

. This places him fifth among English discus throwers, behind Perriss Wilkins,

Richard Slaney Richard Charles Slaney (born 16 May 1956) is a male British discus thrower who competed in the 1984 Summer Olympics and strongman competitor, notable for being a repeat winner of the Britain's Strongest Man title. At the UK Athletics Champion ...

, Glen Smith and Carl Myerscough. Weir represented Great Britain in the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the sec ...

. He represented

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

in the discus event and won a gold medal in the hammer event, at the 1982 Commonwealth Games in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

, Australia. Eight years later he won a bronze medal in the discus at the

1994 Commonwealth Games The 1994 Commonwealth Games (French: ''XVéme Jeux du Commonwealth'') were held in Victoria, British Columbia, from 18 to 28 August 1994. Ten types of sports were featured at the Victoria Games: athletics, aquatics, badminton, boxing, cycling ...

and followed this up with a gold medal in the discus four years later at the

1998 Commonwealth Games The 1998 Commonwealth Games ''( Malay: Sukan Komanwel 1998)'', officially known as the XVI Commonwealth Games ''(Malay: Sukan Komanwel ke-16)'', was a multi-sport event held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. This edition is marked by several unpreceden ...

Kuala Lumpur , anthem = ''Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , sub ...

. He appeared in his final Commonwealth Games at the

2002 Commonwealth Games The 2002 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XVII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Manchester 2002 were held in Manchester, England, from 25 July to 4 August, 2002. The 2002 Games were to be hosted in the United Kingdom to coin ...

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

and won a fourth medal in the process; another bronze in the discus. Weir also competed at the 1997 World's Strongest Man competition, finishing 3rd in a qualifying group of six, only being beaten by

Jouko Ahola Jouko Ahola (born December 1, 1970) is a Finnish former strongman, powerlifter and actor. He is a two time World's Strongest Man winner, a two time Europe's Strongest Man winner, and is regarded as on ...

and

Flemming Rasmussen Flemming Rasmussen (born 1 January 1958) is a Danish sound engineer, record producer, and owner and founder of Sweet Silence Studios in Copenhagen, Denmark. Rasmussen is currently main engineer/producer at Sweet Silence North in Helsingør. Bio ...

who went on to finish as champion and runner-up respectively in the 1997 final .UK All-Time Lists: Men - Throws
- GBR Athletics

International competitions

References

External links

*
Profile
at Sporting Heroes
Youtube
1984 Olympics {{DEFAULTSORT:Weir, Robert 1961 births Living people Sportspeople from Birmingham, West Midlands British male discus throwers English male discus throwers British male hammer throwers English male hammer throwers Olympic athletes for Great Britain Athletes (track and field) at the 1984 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1996 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Olympics Commonwealth Games gold medallists for England Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics Athletes (track and field) at the 1982 Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1994 Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1998 Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2002 Commonwealth Games Universiade medalists in athletics (track and field) Birchfield Harriers People educated at Handsworth Grammar School Universiade silver medalists for Great Britain Medalists at the 1983 Summer Universiade Medallists at the 1982 Commonwealth Games Medallists at the 1994 Commonwealth Games Medallists at the 1998 Commonwealth Games Medallists at the 2002 Commonwealth Games