Joshua Casey Thompson (born in
Lawrence, Kansas
Lawrence is a city in and the county seat of Douglas County, Kansas, United States, and the sixth-largest city in the state. It is in the northeastern sector of the state, astride Interstate 70 in Kansas, Interstate 70, between the Kansas River ...
on February 28, 1962) is a retired
American biathlete and pilot. He was educated at
Colorado Rocky Mountain School and
Western State Colorado University, attending the latter on an athletic scholarship and leading them to a national collegiate cross-country title. He initially enjoyed success at junior level as a cross-country skier before switching to biathlon after first coming across the sport while competing at the junior national cross-country championships in 1980. His silver at the 20 km race of the
Biathlon World Championships 1987 was the best place a US biathlete had achieved at that point. He never won an Olympic medal but finished sixteenth at the
1992 Winter Olympics
The 1992 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVI Olympic Winter Games () and commonly known as Albertville '92 (Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Arbèrtvile '92''), were a winter multi-sport event held from 8 to 23 February 1992 in and aroun ...
in Albertville, France, which was a good showing for Americans at that time. As the sport was not popular in the US at that time he was said to be better known in Europe than in his homeland. He has since become a pilot in
Gunnison, Colorado
Gunnison is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Gunnison County, Colorado. The city population was 6,560 at the 2020 United States census. The city was named in honor of John W. Gunnison, a ...
.
Average Joe: God's Extraordinary Calling to Ordinary Men by Troy Meeder, pgs 138-145
/ref>
References
1962 births
Living people
Biathletes at the 1984 Winter Olympics
Biathletes at the 1988 Winter Olympics
Biathletes at the 1992 Winter Olympics
Olympic biathletes for the United States
American male biathletes
Biathlon World Championships medalists
Western Colorado University alumni
20th-century American sportsmen
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