# Robert Weir (discus thrower)

Robert 'Bob' Boyd Weir (born 4 February 1961 in Birmingham) is a male retired English athlete, best known as a discus thrower, who was a twelve-time national champion. Weir also achieved success in hammer throw, winning Commonwealth Games gold in 1982, and competed in strongman competitions.
His daughter, Jillian Weir, representing Canada, won bronze in the women's hammer at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, emulating her father's achievement 20 years before.

## Education

Weir attended Handsworth Grammar School in Birmingham. Weir studied at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas attaining a degree in Business Studies in 1983.

## Athletics career

His personal best throw was 65.08 metres, achieved in August 2000 in Bedford. This places him fifth among English discus throwers, behind Perriss Wilkins, Richard Slaney, Glen Smith and Carl Myerscough. Weir represented Great Britain in the 1984 Summer Olympics. He represented England in the discus event and won a gold medal in the hammer event, at the 1982 Commonwealth Games in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Eight years later he won a bronze medal in the discus at the 1994 Commonwealth Games and followed this up with a gold medal in the discus four years later at the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur. He appeared in his final Commonwealth Games at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester and won a fourth medal in the process; another bronze in the discus.
Representing the SMU Mustangs track and field team, Weir won the 1983 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships in the hammer throw.
Weir also competed at the 1997 World's Strongest Man competition, finishing 3rd in a qualifying group of six, only being beaten by Jouko Ahola and Flemming Rasmussen who went on to finish as champion and runner-up respectively in the 1997 final .

## International competitions

| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Notes |
| Representing Great Britain and England ||||||
| 1981 | Universiade | Bucharest, Romania | 8th | Discus throw | 56.42 m |
| 1981 | Universiade | Bucharest, Romania | 12th | Hammer throw | 64.56 m |
| 1982 | Commonwealth Games | Brisbane, Australia | 5th | Discus throw | 59.26 m |
| 1982 | Commonwealth Games | Brisbane, Australia | 1st | Hammer throw | 75.08 m |
| 1983 | Universiade | Edmonton, Canada | 2nd | Hammer throw | 74.10 m |
| 1983 | World Championships | Helsinki, Finland | 15th (q) | Hammer throw | 71.62 m |
| 1984 | Olympic Games | Los Angeles, United States | 10th | Discus throw | 61.36 m |
| 1984 | Olympic Games | Los Angeles, United States | 8th | Hammer throw | 72.62 m |
| 1993 | World Championships | Stuttgart, Germany | 18th (q) | Discus throw | 59.74 m |
| 1994 | European Championships | Helsinki, Finland | 13th (q) | Discus throw | 57.18 m |
| 1994 | Commonwealth Games | Victoria, Canada | 3rd | Discus throw | 60.86 m |
| 1995 | World Championships | Gothenburg, Sweden | 9th | Discus throw | 63.14 m |
| 1996 | Olympic Games | Atlanta, United States | 15th (q) | Discus throw | 61.64 m |
| 1997 | World Championships | Athens, Greece | 8th | Discus throw | 63.06 m |
| 1998 | European Championships | Budapest, Hungary | 8th | Discus throw | 61.92 m |
| 1998 | World Cup | Johannesburg, South Africa | 5th | Discus throw | 64.39 m |
| 1998 | Commonwealth Games | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 1st | Discus throw | 64.42 m |
| 1999 | World Championships | Seville, Spain | 13th (q) | Discus throw | 62.71 m |
| 2000 | Olympic Games | Sydney, Australia | 28th (q) | Discus throw | 60.01 m |
| 2001 | World Championships | Edmonton, Canada | 15th (q) | Discus throw | 61.05 m |
| 2002 | Commonwealth Games | Manchester, United Kingdom | 3rd | Discus throw | 59.24 m |
| 2002 | European Championships | Munich, Germany | 21st (q) | Discus throw | 58.37 m |
| 2002 | World Cup | Madrid, Spain | 7th | Discus throw | 58.91 m |