Dean Smith, Olympic Champion Sprinter and Stuntman for John Wayne, Dies at 91

The Texan rodeo cowboy won the gold medal in the 4×100 relay and worked in Western films and TV shows like “How the West Was Won”

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Western stuntman Dean Smith, right, with one of his closest cinematic collaborators, John Wayne

Dean Smith, a Hollywood stuntman who worked in dozens of Westerns after winning a gold medal at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, died on Saturday, his son Finis announced on social media. Smith was 91.

Born and raised in Texas, Smith competed in track and football for the University of Texas at Austin and qualified for the Olympics at the age of 20. While he finished just off the podium in the 100-meter dash by landing in fourth place, he claimed the gold medal in the 4×100-meter relay as part of a team with 1948 100-meter Olympic gold medalist Harrison “Bones” Dillard, 1952 100-meter gold medalist Lindy Remigino, and 1952 200-meter gold medalist Andy Stanfield.

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