Some Famous People From Amarillo Include These Olympic Athletes

Amarillo is famous for a lot of things. Music, food, cowboys, outlaws, and artists have formed the history of Amarillo in the minds of most. Since the winter Olympic games are well underway, I decided to see if Amarillo can claim an Olympians as sons and daughters. Here are five that I found that competed in front of the entire world after getting their start in Amarillo. Some of these Olympians even won the coveted gold medal in their events, proving that there is definitely something special about the people in the High Plains.

Dick Hutton

Dick Hutton was born in Amarillo in 1923. He attended Oklahoma A&M University where he was a three time NCAA wrestling champion in 1947, 1948, and 1950. While he was still a student at Oklahoma A&M, he went to the 1948 Olympic games where he placed 7th in freestyle wrestling.

After the Olympics, he went on to win the title of NWA World Heavyweight Championship and held it for a year. He died in 2003.

Jack Davis

Jack Davis was born in Amarillo in 1930. His athletic prowess was on full display in the hurdles events. He made it to the Olympics in 1952 and 1956, winning silver medals both times. He actually set a world record in a separate competition in 1956.

In 2004 he was inducted into the U.S. Track & Field Hall of Fame. He died in 2015.

Alex O'Brien

Born in 1970 in Amarillo, Alex would go on to be an Olympic tennis player. He performed in the summer games in Sydney in 2000 in the Men's Doubles category. He retired from tennis and now runs an online frozen steak business and created an online bank that has branches in Amarillo and McLean.

Brandon Slay

Brandon Slay was born in Amarillo in 1975 and graduated Tascosa High School where he was a three time state champion in wrestling. He went on to compete in the Olympic games held in Sydney in 2000, winning the gold medal in the wrestling event in the men's middleweight division.

Brandon Slay is currently is the Assistant National Freestyle Coach and National Freestyle Resident Coach for USA wrestling, at the Olympic Training Center (USOTC) in Colorado Springs.

Riley Salmon

Riley was born in Amarillo in 1976. He participated in the volleyball event at the 2004 and 2008 Olympics. He helped his team in winning a gold medal at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.