Lahcen Samsam

Lahcen Samsam was a Moroccan weight thrower, primarily a shot putter, who competed at the 1964 and 1972 Olympics. He was entered in 1968 at Mexico City but did not start. Samsam studied and competed in the United States. He started at Oregon State, graduating with a soil chemistry degree in the mid-1960s. He then returned to Morocco and worked in a lab but could not tolerate the sedentary lifestyle and thus returned to the USA and studied for a masters’ degree at San Jose State University.

Samsam’s birthdate is listed as 14 June 1942 in the 1964 Olympic entry lists and as simply 1945 in the 1972 entry lists. Both were made up by Samsam, however, as he said his parents lived in the country and were illiterate and never wrote down a date of birth so it is not known exactly when he was born.

Personal Best: SP – 20.45 (1972).