Gary Kinder (born October 25, 1962) is a U.S. Olympian who participated in the decathlon at the 1988 OlympicsinSeoul. Kinder qualified for the team by finishing first in the 1988 Olympic trials in a PR 8293pts. Kinder finished 12th in the 1987 World Championships of track and field with 8030 points, beating teammate Rob Muzzio by 13 points.
Kinder attended the University of Mississippi and was coached by head coach Joe Walker. Kinder still[when?] holds the university records in the decathlon (7565 pts.) and javelin (old style-224'3"). He transferred to the University of New Mexico and finished 2nd at the 1985 NCAA championships in the decathlon with 7965 points,[citation needed] still the record for the university.
Kinder first appeared on the U.S. list in 1985 with a #6 ranking, and reached #2 in 1988. He was ranked in the top 10 U.S. decathletes continuously from 1985 through 1990. His finishes at the U.S. championships were:
Kinder is currently[when?] #96 on the world all-time list in decathlon with his personal best of 8293.[2]
In June 1991, Kinder was suspended for two years over a doping violation by the governing body of USA Track and Field. However, the ruling was immediately overturned by an arbitration panel of USA Track and Field when flaws in the testing protocol were discovered in this case.[citation needed] Kinder went on to compete in the 1992 Olympic Trials as well as two more United States Decathlon Championships.
