Born March 17, 1885, Healdsburg, Calif. Died October 16, 1913.

The world shot put record holder during his era, Ralph Rose attended the University of Michigan and later represented the San Francisco Olympic Club. A competitor in three Olympic Games, he competed in a variety of Olympic events and finished with a medal total of three golds, two silver and one bronze.

He set a world shot put record of 51-0 in 1909 and the record held for 16 years. He won seven National AAU titles in the shot, discus and javelin. At 6-5 1/2 and 280 pounds (a giant even by today's standards) Rose was active at three Olympics. In 1904, he won the shot, was second in the discus, third in the hammer throw and sixth in the 56-pound weight throw. Four years later, he repeated as the shot put champion and in 1912 won the two-handed shot put, took second in the regular shot, ninth in the hammer and 11th in the discus. The first man to throw the shot 50 feet, he was the U.S. flagbearer at the 1908 Olympic Games and started a still-current tradition when he wouldn't dip the U.S. flag to the British king.