William Yorzyk
 Yorzyk in 1956 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | William Albert Yorzyk Jr. | |||||||||||||||||||
| Nickname(s) | "Bill" | |||||||||||||||||||
| National team |  United States | |||||||||||||||||||
| Born | May 29, 1933 Northampton, Massachusetts | |||||||||||||||||||
| Died | September 2, 2020 (aged 87) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 163 lb (74 kg) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Swimming | |||||||||||||||||||
| Strokes | Butterfly, freestyle | |||||||||||||||||||
| Club | New Haven Swim Club | |||||||||||||||||||
| College team | Springfield College | |||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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William Albert Yorzyk Jr. (May 29, 1933 – September 2, 2020) was an American competition swimmer, Olympic champion, and one-time world record-holder.[1]
Yorzyk represented the United States at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia.[2] He was the first swimmer to win the gold medal in the new 200-meter butterfly event, finishing with a time of 2:19.3 in the final.[2][3]
Yorzyk continued to swim competitively while he attended medical school at the University of Toronto. Yorzyk served as a physician in the United States Air Force Medical Corps and was commissioned a captain. He won the U.S. AAU indoor championship in the 220-yard butterfly in 1958. He was awarded the university's Bickle Prize as its outstanding student-athlete in 1958 and 1959.[4]
Yorzyk was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame as an "Honor Swimmer" in 1971.[4]
William Yorzyk died on 2 September 2020, aged 87.[5]
See also[]
- List of members of the International Swimming Hall of Fame
- List of Olympic medalists in swimming (men)
- List of Springfield University alumni
References[]
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to William Yorzyk. |
- ^ "Passages: William 'Bill' Yorzyk, 1956 Olympic Champion in 200 Butterfly". 3 September 2020.
- ^ a b Sports-Reference.com, Olympic Sports, Athletes, Bill Yorzyk. Retrieved March 21, 2013.
- ^ Sports-Reference.com, Olympic Sports, Swimming at the 1956 Melbourne Summer Games, [Men's 200 metres Butterfly Final. Retrieved March 21, 2013.
- ^ a b International Swimming Hall of Fame, Honorees, William Yorzyk (USA). Retrieved April 5, 2015.
- ^ Passages: William ‘Bill' Yorzyk, 1956 Olympic Champion in 200 Butterfly
| Men's Team |  | |
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| Women's Team | ||
 Olympic champions in men's 200 m butterfly | |
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- 1933 births
- 2020 deaths
- American male butterfly swimmers
- American male freestyle swimmers
- Olympic gold medalists for the United States in swimming
- People from Northampton, Massachusetts
- Swimmers from Massachusetts
- Springfield Pride men's swimmers
- University of Toronto alumni
- Physicians from Massachusetts
- American anesthesiologists
- Military personnel from Massachusetts
- United States Air Force Medical Corps officers
- Swimmers at the 1955 Pan American Games
- Swimmers at the 1956 Summer Olympics
- Medalists at the 1956 Summer Olympics
- Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States
- Pan American Games medalists in swimming
- Medalists at the 1955 Pan American Games