Daley Thompson

About

Daley was the first athlete to win Olympic, World, Commonwealth and European titles and hold a world record. Given the difficulty of the decathlon, which requires proficiency in ten events, the winner is considered an all-round athletics champion, and Daley Thompson became only the second person in Olympic history to claim the decathlon gold twice.

Daley Thompson CBE, born Francis Morgan Ayodélé Thompson, is a former British Decathlete and Olympic Gold medalist. He is also a former professional footballer, and motivational speaker.

Daley won the decathlon gold medal at the Olympic Games in 1980 and 1984, and broke the world record for the event four times.

Thompson competed in his first decathlon in 1975 and in 1976 he won the AAA title and was 18th at the Montréal Olympic Games. The following year, he won the European Junior title and in 1978 won the first of his three Commonwealth titles. In 1983, Daley won the inaugural World Championships and became the first decathlete to hold the European, World and Olympic titles simultaneously.

With four world records, two Olympic gold medals, three Commonwealth titles, and wins in the World and European Championships, Daley Thompson is considered by many to be the greatest decathlete of all time.

In the 1990s he played professional football for Mansfield Town and Stevenage Borough F.C., and then worked as fitness coach for Wimbledon and Luton Town football clubs.

Thompson was awarded the MBE in 1982, the OBE in 1986, and the CBE in 2000.

A confident and inspirational character, Thompson is an ambassador for the London 2012 Summer Olympics. Using his profile and skills as a speaker Daley Thompson plans to highlight what benefits hosting the Olympics would bring to education and sport in schools.