An excellent high school athlete, Bruce Jenner earned a football scholarship and attended Graceland College (now Graceland University), but a knee injury forced him to stop playing football and switch to the decathlon. He became an American champion in the event and won a gold medal at the 1976 Summer Olympics. He was the 1976 recipient of the James E. Sullivan Award as the top amateur athlete in the United States.

Bruce Jenner attended Newtown High School in Newtown, Connecticut. The stadium there was to be named after him, but following an argument between the school and Jenner concerning the high school's construction project that was to displace an ancient Native American burial mound, the stadium is now called Blue and Gold Stadium.

He is widely known to have struggled with dyslexia and after retiring from sports, he built a successful career as a motivational speaker. In addition, he has acted in a number of television shows and motion pictures. In 2006, Jenner competed on the FOX reality show Skating with Celebrities, partnered with former U.S. and World Champion pairs figure skater Tai Babilonia and finished 3rd out of 6 couples.

His sons (with Linda Thompson, to whom he was married from 1981 to 1983) Brandon and Brody appeared in their own reality show The Princes of Malibu, which featured them living with their stepfather David Foster. His stepdaughter Kourtney Kardashian likewise appeared on the E! network's reality series Filthy Rich: Cattle Drive. He is currently married to the former Kris Kardashian.