Dan O'Brien
He overcame a devastating Olympic trials failure to become America's decathlon king, winning world titles and finally seizing gold in Atlanta.
Born 1966 (age 60)·American decathlete·Birthday: July 18·Generation X
Biography
Dan O'Brien's story is the ultimate decathlon drama: a tale of supreme talent nearly derailed by a single, public misstep. In the early 1990s, he and rival Dave Johnson were catapulted to fame by a Reebok ad campaign asking 'Dan and Dave' who would win in Barcelona. The answer became a national shock when O'Brien, the world record holder, no-heighted in the pole vault at the U.S. trials and failed to make the team. That crushing setback forged a tougher competitor. He dominated the next four years, winning three consecutive world championships with a blend of explosive speed and formidable strength. When his moment finally arrived at the 1996 Atlanta Games, he seized it decisively, winning Olympic gold on home soil and cementing his status as one of the greatest all-around athletes America has produced.
Generation X
1965–1980
The latchkey kids. Raised during divorce, recession, and the end of the Cold War. Skeptical, self-reliant, media-literate. They invented indie culture, grunge, and the early internet — then watched the Boomers take credit.
Dan was born in 1966, placing them squarely in the Generation X. The events that shaped this generation — economic uncertainty, the end of the Cold War, and the rise of personal computing — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Dan Was Born
The biggest hits of 1966
#1 Movie
The Bible: In the Beginning
Best Picture
A Man for All Seasons
#1 TV Show
Bonanza
Dan's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1966Born
Star Trek premieres on television
Gas: $0.32/galHome: $14,200Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"The Ballad of the Green Berets" — SSgt Barry SadlerBest Picture: A Man for All Seasons
1971Started school
Voting age lowered to 18 in the US
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $18,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Joy to the World" — Three Dog NightBest Picture: The French Connection
1979Became a teenager
Iran hostage crisis begins; Three Mile Island accident
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $37,900Min wage: $2.90/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"My Sharona" — The KnackBest Picture: Kramer vs. Kramer
1982Could drive
Michael Jackson releases Thriller
Gas: $1.22/galHome: $55,200Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Physical" — Olivia Newton-JohnBest Picture: Gandhi
1984Could vote
Apple Macintosh introduced
Gas: $1.13/galHome: $59,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"When Doves Cry" — PrinceBest Picture: Amadeus
1987Turned 21
Black Monday stock market crash
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $72,400Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Walk Like an Egyptian" — The BanglesBest Picture: The Last Emperor
1996Turned 30
Dolly the sheep cloned
Gas: $1.23/galHome: $99,700Min wage: $4.75/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Macarena" — Los del RioBest Picture: The English Patient
2006Turned 40
Twitter launches; Pluto reclassified as dwarf planet
Gas: $2.59/galHome: $174,700Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Bad Day" — Daniel PowterBest Picture: The Departed
2016Turned 50
Donald Trump elected president; Brexit vote
Gas: $2.14/galHome: $181,700Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Love Yourself" — Justin BieberBest Picture: Moonlight
2026Turned 60
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Won the Olympic gold medal in the decathlon at the 1996 Atlanta Games.
- Won three consecutive World Championship titles in the decathlon (1991, 1993, 1995).
- Set the decathlon world record of 8,891 points in 1992, which stood for years.
- Was a key figure in the popular 'Dan and Dave' Reebok advertising campaign.
Did You Know?
He was adopted as an infant and discovered his biological family later in life.
His failure to make the 1992 Olympic team occurred on a televised special specifically for the trials.
He was a standout football player and hurdler at the University of Idaho.
He later worked as a television analyst for track and field events.
“You have to remember that the decathlon is not ten separate events. It's one event with ten parts.”
