University of California Athletics

An All-American in the javelin when he was the NCAA runner-up in 1973, Bruce Kennedy remains one of the top javelin throwers in school history. He set a school record with an effort of 267-4 as a senior and represented the United States internationally four times, including at the 1977 Pan Pacific Games. Kennedy placed eighth in the javelin at the 1971 NCAA Championships and captured a Pac-8 title in 1972. He was ranked among the top 10 in the United States from 1978-82, including as high as No. 2 in both 1980 and ’81, and won U.S. championships in both 1977 and ’81. A native of Rhodesia, Kennedy earned a spot on the country’s 1972 and ’76 Olympic teams, but was unable to participate because Rhodesia was not invited to the Games due to its practice of apartheid at the time. After becoming a U.S. citizen, Kennedy made his third Olympic team in 1980. However, the U.S. boycott of the Moscow Games prevented him from participating in the Olympics once again.