[1] Next year he set a new world record at 57.93 m.[2] As a child of sharecroppers, in 1934 his family left Oklahoma due to the onset of the dust bowl and moved to the small San Joaquin Valley town of Tulare, California.

Weeks after his high school graduation, and on his 18th birthday, Iness placed sixth in the discus in the 1948 Olympic Trials.

[3] Iness competed for the United States in the 1952 Summer Olympics held in Helsinki, Finland, here he won the gold medal with a throw of 55.03 m. His gold medal triumph started the longest USA winning streak in the discus event in modern Olympic history.

He set the discus world's record on June 28, 1953 in Lincoln, Nebraska at 57.93 m, being the first man to throw over 190 feet.

[1] He went on to appear in two Hollywood films, Sign of the Pagan (1954) with Jack Palance and Jeff Chandler and Lady Godiva of Coventry (1955) with Maureen O'Hara.