Bruce Jenner biography

Synopsis

Profile

Track athlete, motivational speaker. Born William Bruce Jenner on October 28, 1949 in Mount Kisco, New York. As a boy, Bruce Jenner struggled with dyslexia and sought success through sports. In high school, he excelled in water skiing, football, basketball and track. He accepted a football scholarship from Graceland College in Iowa, but after a knee injury took him out of the game, he switched to track and field. His college track coach, L.D. Weldon, was the one who convinced Jenner to train for the Olympic decathlon.

In 1972, Jenner placed third in the Olympic trials and tenth at the Munich games. Four years later, he won a gold medal at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, scoring a world record-setting 8,634 points in the decathlon. After his win, a bystander handed him an American flag, which he enthusiastically grabbed for a victory lap, a gesture that has been repeated in Olympic games ever since.

Following his Olympic success, Jenner has remained in the public eye through endorsements, speaking engagements, TV guest appearances and other outlets. After famously appearing on the Wheaties box, he pursued guest appearances on such TV shows as "CHiPs" and "The American Sportsman". In 1980, he made his big screen debut in the notorious flop Can't Stop the Music and has never appeared in films again.

Jenner has appeared as himself on numerous game shows and reality programs in recent years, most notably with his wife, Kris, stepchildren Kim, Kourtney, Khloe and Robert, and children Kendall and Kylie in the E! reality series Keeping Up with the Kardashians. Jenner also has two children, Casey and Burt, from his first marriage to Chrystie Crownover and two sons, Brandon and Brody, by his second wife Linda Thompson.

Since his retirement from sports, Jenner has become a popular motivational speaker and television sports commentator. He is head of Bruce Jenner Aviation, a firm that sells aircraft to executives and corporations. Jenner is the author of several books, including Decathlon Challenge: Bruce Jenner's Story, The Teenage Guide to Fitness and Finding the Champion Within.

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