Dan O’Brien won an Olympic gold medal at the Atlanta Olympic Games (1996). He is triple decathlon World champion (1991, 1993, 1995) and a former World Record holder (8891 points scored in Talence 1992).
Steve Fritz missed an Olympic medal by 20 points in Atlanta 1996. He had finished the best competition of his life, scoring 8644 points. That got him 4th place.
Failing in just one event can end a decathlete's entire competition, with no points scored and no chance of recovery - no matter how well they've performed elsewhere.
Roman Šebrle became the first decathlete ever to achieve over 9000 points, setting the World Record at 9026 points (Götzis 2001), succeeding his compatriot, Tomaš Dvorak, who had scored 8994 points two years earlier (Prague 1999).
Ramil Ganiyev holds the Uzbekistan national record in decathlon with 8445 points from his performance in Athens 1997. Also holds the indoor heptathlon record for Uzbekistan with 5918 points scored in Sofia 1990.
At the 1993 World Championships in Stuttgart, Paul Meier captured the bronze medal with a personal best score of 8548 points. On 30 April 2004, he married high jumper Heike Henkel. They have a daughter, Marlene Meier.
Jaakko Ojaniemi’s top decathlon score of 8192 points was achieved at the 2002 European Championships in München. His international medal collection is almost entirely from junior and U23 competitions.
Rafer Johnson, a multi-sport high school star who rose from poverty and discrimination, became one of the greatest decathletes in history, ultimately winning Olympic gold in 1960 after a dramatic final event against C.K. Yang.
Kurt Bendlin, a gifted German decathlete, overcame multiple injuries and personal tragedy to set a world record in 1967, and despite repeated setbacks, made several comebacks throughout his career.
This story captures Jürgen Hingsen’s incredible achievements and records while highlighting the recurring theme of being overshadowed by Daley Thompson