Early Athletic Career
Ken Patera was genetically predisposed towards Olympic lifting from the start: he was strong and extraordinarily athletic. His brother Jack Patera played football for the Baltimore Colts and was the head coach for the Seattle Seahawks from 1976 until 1982. Ken played football at Cleveland High School in Portland, Oregon and wrestled weighing at 193 pounds. However, Track and Field was his first love and he ran the high hurdles and high jumped, but a serious ankle injury forced him to switch to the shot put and discus in high school. Ken grew to become one of the nation’s premier track and field weight throwers. Ken attended Brigham Young University on a scholarship and won a gold medal in the shot-put at the Pan American Games in 1967. After his disappointing 6th place finish in the shot-put at the 1968 Olympic trials, he turned his full and complete attention towards Olympic weightlifting.
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