Norbert Schemansky
American weightlifter (1924–2016)
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Norbert Schemansky (May 30, 1924 – September 7, 2016) was an American weightlifter. He was the first weightlifter to win four Olympic medals, despite missing the 1956 Summer Olympics due to back problems. He won a silver medal in the 1948 Summer Olympic Games, a gold in the 1952 Summer Olympics and bronzes in the 1960 and 1964 Summer Olympics.
Schemansky at the 1964 Olympics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Nickname | Norb | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | May 30, 1924 Detroit, Michigan, U.S. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | September 7, 2016 (aged 92) Dearborn, Michigan, U.S. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 181 cm (5 ft 11 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 90–121 kg (198–267 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Olympic weightlifting | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Events | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | York Barbell Club | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Turned pro | 1947 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Retired | 1972 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Biography
Schemansky was a three-time world champion and a Pan American and Olympic games gold medalist. During his long weightlifting career (1947–1972) he set 13 official and 11 unofficial world records.[1] On April 28, 1962, at the age of 37 years and 333 days, Schemansky became the oldest man in the history of weightlifting to set an official world record, when he snatched 164 kg.[2] In 1997 Schemansky was inducted into the International Weightlifting Federation Hall of fame.[3][4] In 1979, he was inducted into the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame. He was born and raised in Detroit and from 1959 until his death in 2016 lived in Dearborn, Michigan, where a city park was named for him. Prior to his years of Olympic weightlifting competition, Schemansky served in World War II with the 184th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion and fought at the Battle of the Bulge. Schemansky died in Dearborn on September 7, 2016, at the age of 92, while in hospice care.[5][6]
