OERTER, AL

born Sept. 19, 1936, Astoria [now part of New York City], N.Y., U.S. in full Alfred Oerter American discus thrower who won four consecutive Olympic gold medals (1956, 1960, 1964, and 1968). During his career he set new world records four times (196264). He was the first to throw the discus more than 200 feet with his first world record of 61.10 m (200 feet 5 inches). His best throw in setting a world record was 62.94 m in 1964; his best Olympic throw was 64.78 m in 1968. After taking up weight lifting in his teens to fill out his slender build, Oerter was a football player and sprinter in high school. He discovered his discus ability when he idly picked up the discus and threw it farther than anyone else on the track team could. He attended the University of Kansas (Lawrence) on a track scholarship (195458) and won six national Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) titles. Oerter went into data-communication work after graduating from college. Although his original goal was to win five gold medals, he retired from Olympic competition after the 1968 Games owing to the sacrifices and pressures of being an Olympic champion. He resumed training, however, in 1976. Although he failed to qualify for the U.S. team in 1980 and 1984, he was the world record holder in Masters track and field competition in the early 1980s.