In his youth Enrique Thompson excelled in football, swimming, and track and field and became one of the best athletes in Argentina in the early 1920s. Thompson won gold in the 800 metres at the 1920 South American Championships. Four years later he won another South American title with gold in the decathlon, along with a silver in the 400 metres hurdles. For his performance he was rewarded with a spot on the Argentine team for the 1924 Paris Olympics where Thompson was also the nation’s flagbearer at the Opening Ceremony. At the Olympics he competed in the decathlon where he finished 13th, which included a win in the 1,500 metres, and matching the second-best time in the 100 metres. Sadly his life was cut short when he died in December 1928 at the age of 31 after he contracted a subtropical disease.
Personal Bests: 400H – 56.0 (1925); Dec – 5458 (1924).
Argentina