Peter Vidmar
Personal information
Nationality United States
Born (1961-06-03) June 3, 1961
Los Angeles, United States
Height1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)
Weight60 kg (132 lb)
Sport
SportArtistic gymnastics
ClubUCLA Bruins, Los Angeles
Medal record
Men's gymnastics
Representing the  United States
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place1984 Los AngelesPommel horse
Gold medal – first place1984 Los AngelesTeam competition
Silver medal – second place1984 Los AngelesAll-around
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place1979 Fort WorthTeam

Peter Glen Vidmar (born June 3, 1961 in Los Angeles) is an American gymnast and two time Olympic gold medalist. He won gold in the team final and pommel horse as well as silver in the individual all around.[1]

Olympics

At age 18, Peter Vidmar was the youngest member of the bronze medal winning 1979 world championships team. Vidmar qualified for the 1980 Olympic team but did not compete due to the Olympic Committee's boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, Russia. As consolation, he was one of 461 athletes to receive a Congressional Gold Medal many years later.[2] At the 1984 Summer Olympic games in Los Angeles, Vidmar won gold medals in the men's all-around team competition and the pommel horse competition, as well as a silver medal in the men's all-around individual gymnastics competition. With a total of three Olympic medals, two golds and a silver,[3] he is one of only three athletes inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame twice: first as an individual, then as a member of the historic 1984 U.S. men's gymnastics team.[4] He also was the highest-scoring American gymnast in Olympic history.[5]

UCLA

He is an alumnus of UCLA.[6] In 1983, Vidmar won the Nissen Award (the "Heisman" of men's gymnastics).[7]

Career

Vidmar hosts the annual Peter Vidmar Men's Gymnastics Invitational at Brentwood School in Los Angeles. He has been a gymnastics anchor for both CBS and ESPN. He is currently a motivational speaker as well as a co-chairman of the U.S. Olympic Committee Summer Sports Summit. In 1998 Vidmar was inducted into the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame.[8]

Personal

Vidmar is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.[9]

2012 Olympics

Vidmar was selected to be the chef de mission for the 2012 Olympics, where he would have represented all U.S. athletes and marched in the opening ceremonies. His selection drew criticism from LGBT activists and athletes, including Olympic figure skater Johnny Weir, because in 2008 Vidmar donated money to and publicly campaigned for Proposition 8 that banned same-sex couples from being married in California. Vidmar decided several days after his selection to resign from the appointment.[10] Vidmar said, “I simply cannot have my presence become a detriment to the U.S. Olympic family.”[11]

U.S. Gymnastics

Vidmar was named chairman of the U.S. Gymnastics Board of Directors in December 2008.[12] He left his role at USA Gymnastics in December 2015 to serve as a mission president for the LDS Church in the Australia Melbourne Mission.[13]

References

  1. ↑ Benson, Lee; Robinson, Doug (January 1, 1992). Trials & Triumphs/Mormons in the Olympic Games. Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book Company. p. Foreward. Retrieved October 13, 2023.
  2. ↑ Caroccioli, Tom; Caroccioli, Jerry (2008). Boycott: Stolen Dreams of the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games. Highland Park, IL: New Chapter Press. pp. 243–253. ISBN 978-0942257403.
  3. ↑ "Peter Vidmar". Sports Reference
  4. ↑ Peter Vidmar Biography SpeakersOffice Inc.
  5. ↑ Succop, Christie (May 13, 2009). "Amazing Moments in Olympic History: 1984 Men's Gymnastics Team". U.S. Olympic Committee.
  6. ↑ "July 28, 1984: The 23rd Olympiad Begins". UCLA History Project. Retrieved August 9, 2020.
  7. ↑ "Nissen Emery Award". USA Gymnastics. Archived from the original on August 23, 2012. Retrieved August 9, 2020.
  8. ↑ "Peter Vidmar". International Gymnastics Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on May 4, 2007. Retrieved May 12, 2007.
  9. ↑ Farmer, Molly (May 17, 2009). "15 minutes more earns success, Olympian Peter Vidmar tells LDS singles". Mormon Times. Archived from the original on May 19, 2009 – via Deseret News.
  10. ↑ Brennan, Christine (May 6, 2011) USOC official Peter Vidmar resigns after anti-gay marriage actions. USA Today.
  11. ↑ Peter Vidmar Resigns as U.S. Chef de Mission. Around the Rings (May 6, 2011).
  12. ↑ Peter Vidmar Archived October 2, 2009, at the Wayback Machine. USA Gymnastics. Retrieved on August 4, 2014.
  13. ↑ "Vidmar leaves USA Gymnastics for missionary posting". Reuters. December 11, 2015. Retrieved August 9, 2020.
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