Lemuel Clarence "Bud" Houser (September 25, 1901 – October 1, 1994) was an American field athlete. He won Olympic gold medals in the

discus throw The discus throw (), also known as disc throw, is a track and field sport in which the participant athlete throws an oblate spheroid weight (object), weight called a discus in an attempt to mark a further distance than other competitors. It is a ...

in 1924 and 1928 and in the

shot put The shot put is a track-and-field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical Ball (sports), ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. For men, the sport has been a part of the Olympic Games, modern Olympics since their 1896 Summer Olym ...

in 1924.

Biography

Houser was born in Winigan, Missouri, but later moved to

Oxnard, California Oxnard () is a city in Ventura County in the U.S. state of California, United States. On California's Central Coast (California), Central Coast, it is the most populous city in Ventura County and the List of largest California cities by populati ...

to escape the drought after both his parents died in 1911. He was raised by his sister Martha and her husband Walter Conklin. He gained his strength working in the fields; during summers he would load hay bales in 110-degree heat in Corcoran, California.
As a student at Oxnard High School, Houser participated in the California State Track Meets between 1920–22. His six wins in

and discus, each time breaking a state record, made him the most successful meet participant ever. He was named "Athlete of the Meet" three years in a row. During this time he developed a discus-throwing style of doing one and a half rapid turns in the circle before release that has been copied by many later athletes. He then enrolled at the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

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.USC OLYMPIANS: 1904–2004
, USC Trojans Athletic Department. At the

1924 Summer Olympics The 1924 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the VIII Olympiad () and officially branded as Paris 1924, were an international multi-sport event held in Paris, France. The opening ceremony was held on 5 July, but some competitions had al ...

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, Houser won the gold medal in the shot put, ahead of fellow Americans Glenn Hartranft and Ralph Hills and in the discus, ahead of the Finn Vilho Niittymaa and the American Thomas Lieb. This was the last time a male athlete has won both the shot put and discus in the Olympics. He won national championships in the discus in 1925, 1926, and 1928, and in the shot put in 1921 (while still in high school) and 1925. On April 3, 1926 in

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, in a USC dual meet with Stanford, he set a world record with a discus throw of 48.20 m. At the

1928 Summer Olympics The 1928 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the IX Olympiad (), was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated from 28 July to 12 August 1928 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The city of Amsterdam had previously bid for ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

he was the flag bearer for the United States team. There he retained his title in the discus throw, again leading a Finn, Antero Kivi, and an American James Corson. Houser became a

dentist A dentist, also known as a dental doctor, dental physician, dental surgeon, is a health care professional who specializes in dentistry, the branch of medicine focused on the teeth, gums, and mouth. The dentist's supporting team aids in provi ...

to many movie stars with a practice in

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before moving to Palm Desert, California. The stadium at Oxnard High School (the original location and now the new location) is named in his honor, the announcement a surprise at his graduation. He is a member of the National Track and Field Hall of Fame and an inaugural member of the Ventura County Athletic Hall of Fame.Ventura County Athletic Hall of Fame
vcshf.com

References

External links

Photo of Clarence (Bud) Houser in 1926
''Philly''History.org. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Houser, Clarence 1901 births 1994 deaths People from Sullivan County, Missouri Sportspeople from Oxnard, California American male shot putters American male discus throwers Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field Athletes (track and field) at the 1924 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1928 Summer Olympics University of Southern California alumni Track and field athletes from California Medalists at the 1928 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1924 Summer Olympics Sportspeople from Ventura County, California Oxnard High School alumni NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners USC Trojans men's track and field athletes 20th-century American sportsmen