Russell Arden Hodge (born September 12, 1939) is an American

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

athlete, world record holder in

decathlon The decathlon is a combined event in athletics consisting of 10 track and field events. The word "decathlon" was formed, in analogy to the word "pentathlon", from Greek δέκα (''déka'', meaning "ten") and ἄθλος (''áthlos'', or ἄ ...

(1966–1967), Olympic competitor from 1964, and silver medalist from the

Pan American Games The Pan American Games, known as the Pan Am Games, is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas. It features thousands of athletes participating in competitions to win different summer sports. It is held among athletes from nations of th ...

(1971).

Track and field career

Hodge competed at the

1963 Pan American Games The 1963 Pan American Games, officially known as the IV Pan American Games () and commonly known as São Paulo 1963, were held from April 20 to May 5, 1963, in São Paulo, Brazil. Host city selection For the first time, two cities submitted b ...

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

, where he finished 4th in

. He competed in

at the

1964 Summer Olympics The , officially the and commonly known as Tokyo 1964 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 10 to 24 October 1964 in Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo had been awarded the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this honor was subseq ...

in Tokyo, where he placed ninth. In July 1966 he set a world record in ''

'' at a competition in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, with 8,230 points, a record which lasted until May 1967. Hodge received a silver medal in decathlon at the

1971 Pan American Games The 1971 Pan American Games, officially known as the VI Pan American Games () and commonly known as Cali 1971, were held in Cali, Colombia, from 30 July to 13 August 1971. (One source dates the Games from July 25 to August 8.) A total of 2,935 ...

Cali, Colombia Santiago de Cali (), or Cali, is the capital of the Valle del Cauca department, and the most populous city in southwest Colombia, with 2,280,522 residents estimate by National Administrative Department of Statistics, DANE in 2023. The city span ...

with a score of 7314, behind winner Rick Wanamaker.Pan-American Games
''

Athletics Weekly ''AW'' (formerly ''Athletics Weekly'') is a monthly track and field magazine published in the United Kingdom by Athletics Weekly Limited. The magazine covers news, results, fixtures, coaching and product advice for all aspects of track and field ...

'' 2007. Accessed August 30, 2008. He finished fourth in the AAU National Championship in decathlon in 1963 and in 1964, and second in 1965 and 1966.History of US Nationals Results: Decathlon
, ''

Track and Field News ''Track & Field News'' is an American monthly sports magazine founded in 1948 by brothers Bert Nelson and Cordner Nelson, focused on the world of track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includ ...

'' Archive, 2005. Accessed August 30, 2008. In 1970 he finished second again, as he did in 1971, after a close race with Rick Wanamaker.Ho, Ho, Ho Went The Jolly White Giant
''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...

'', June 21, 1971. Accessed 2008-08-30. Hodge was an

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

n athlete for the UCLA Bruins track and field team, finishing 7th 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 ...

at the 1968 NCAA University Division outdoor track and field championships. Hodge did not compete at the Olympics after 1964. He became injured before the U.S. trials both in 1968 and 1972, and again in 1976.

Family

Hodge is son of

Alice Arden Alice Arden (c. 1516–1551) was an English murderer. She was the daughter of John Brigandine and Alice Squire, and step-daughter of Sir Edward North, later Lord North. She conspired to have her husband, Thomas Arden of Faversham, murdered so ...

, who placed ninth in

high jump The high jump is a track and field event in which competitors must jump unaided over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights without dislodging it. In its modern, most-practiced format, a bar is placed between two standards with a crash mat f ...

at the

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XI Olympiad () and officially branded as Berlin 1936, were an international multi-sport event held from 1 to 16 August 1936 in Berlin, then capital of Nazi Germany. Berlin won the bid to ...

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. His father Russel "Rusty" Hodge was a semi-professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player, playing center for the Liberty Emeralds.

Awards

In August 2003, both Hodge and his mother were honoured with the Sullivan County Historical Society "History Maker" award. They are the only mother-son Olympians in the United States' Olympic history.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hodge, Russ 1939 births Living people American male decathletes Athletes (track and field) at the 1964 Summer Olympics Olympic track and field athletes for the United States World record setters in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 1963 Pan American Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1971 Pan American Games Medalists at the 1971 Pan American Games Pan American Games silver medalists for the United States in athletics (track and field) People from Rockland, New York American masters athletes 20th-century American sportsmen American male shot putters UCLA Bruins men's track and field athletes