Chet Jastremski

Chet Jastremski

Jastremski in 1963
Personal information
Full name Chester Andrew Jastremski
Nickname(s) "Chet"
National team United States
Born (1941-01-12)January 12, 1941
Toledo, Ohio
Died May 3, 2014(2014-05-03) (aged 73)
Bloomington, Indiana
Height 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight 176 lb (80 kg)
Sport
Sport Swimming
Strokes Breaststroke, individual medley
Club Bloomington Swim Club
College team Indiana University

Chester Andrew Jastremski (January 12, 1941 – May 3, 2014) was an American competition swimmer, Olympic medalist and world record-holder.

Jastremski attended Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana, where he swam for Doc Counsilman's Indiana Hoosiers swimming and diving team. He and Counsilman invented the "whip kick" to replace the frog kick, previously used in the breaststroke. The whip kick minimized drag and accentuated Jastremski's very powerful shoulders and upper arms. Over the years, the original whip kick (done from the knee to feet) morphed into the breaststroke kick that uses the entire leg. He was featured on the January 29, 1962 cover of Sports Illustrated.

At the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Jastremski represented the United States. He won the bronze medal in the men's 200-meter breaststroke, finishing with a third-place time of 2:29.6. He again qualified for the U.S. team for the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, and swam for the winning American team in the preliminary heats of the men's 4×100-meter medley relay. He was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1977, and the National Polish American Sports Hall of Fame in 2007.[1]

Jastremski received his medical degree from Indiana University in 1968. He was a member of the 1976 U.S. Olympic medical team. He served as a family practice physician for 35 years before rheumatoid arthritis led him to retire. He practiced medicine in Bloomington, Indiana, and frequently visited the Indiana University swim team throughout the years.

He died on May 3, 2014, aged 73, in Bloomington, after battling cancer, arthritis, and Parkinson's disease.[2]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Profile Archived October 21, 2013, at the Wayback Machine., polishsportshof.com; accessed May 10, 2014.
  2. ↑ College swimming: Jastremski dies at 73, South Bend Tribune (May 6, 2014). Retrieved May 10, 2014.

External links

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