Wilbur Marvin "Moose" Thompson (April 6, 1921 – December 25, 2013) was an American

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 who won a gold medal at the

1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and also known as London 1948) were an international multi-sport event held from 29 July to 14 August 1948 in London, England, United Kingdom. Following a twelve-year hiatus ca ...

. While studying at Modesto Junior College, Thompson won the national junior college title in 1939 and 1940. He then served in the US Army during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, and in 1946 placed second at the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

championships while at USC. He held a world ranking of #6 in 1947, #2 in 1948, #3 in 1949 and #4 in 1950. Thompson graduated with a master's degree in petroleum engineering and later worked in the oil production and at the

California State Lands Commission The California State Lands Commission is a unit of state government that is responsible for management and protection of natural and cultural resources, as well as public access rights, on some of California's publicly owned lands. The members of ...

. He died aged 92. His grandson,

McLeod Bethel-Thompson McLeod John Baltazar Bethel-Thompson (born July 3, 1988) is an American professional football quarterback for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at UCLA and Sacramento State. He is the grands ...

, is a professional quarterback in the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

References

1921 births 2013 deaths People from Spink County, South Dakota American male shot putters Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field Athletes (track and field) at the 1948 Summer Olympics USC Trojans men's track and field athletes Track and field athletes from South Dakota Medalists at the 1948 Summer Olympics United States Army personnel of World War II {{US-athletics-Olympic-medalist-stub