Sim Iness

Simeon ("Sim") Garland Iness (born July 9 1930 in Keota, Oklahoma – died May 23 1996 in Porterville, California) was an American athlete who competed in the discus throw.

In 1934 his family moved from Oklahoma because of the dust bowl to the small San Joaquin Valley town of Tulare, California. There he became lifelong friends with and both a former high school classmate and high school and Olympic team-mate of decathlon champion Bob Mathias.

He went to college at the University of Southern California and won the NCAA discus championship in 1952 and 1953.

He competed for the United States in the 1952 Summer Olympics held in Helsinki, Finland in the discus throw where he won the gold medal with a throw of 55.03 m. He set the discus world's record on June 28 1953 in Lincoln, Nebraska at 57,93 m, being the first man to throw over 190 feet.

After his Olympic and world record triumph, Iness worked the rest of his life as a high school and college physical education teacher, track and football coach, and education counselor.

External links

* [http://www.aafla.org/6oic/OralHistory/OHiness.indd.pdf Biographical interview with Iness in 1991]