Adolph Kiefer

Adolph Gustav "Sonny Boy" Kiefer (born June 27, 1918) was an American swimmer and the first man in the world to swim 100 yards backstroke under 1 minute. His backstroke records stood for 15 years. He was born in Chicago.

Kiefer became the first man to break the one-minute mark in the 100-yard backstroke while competing as a sixteen-year old in the Illinois High School Championships of 1935. His 1936 Illinois state championship backstroke time of 58.5 seconds was the Illinois state high school record until 1960.

Twenty-three records after breaking the one-minute backstroke mark, Kiefer represented the United States at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin. Kiefer came home an Olympic champion, and began traveling with other medalists on a tour of Europe, China, Japan, and South America, during which he challenged every great swimmer in the world to an individual race.

In over 2,000 races, Kiefer lost only twice. At the National AAU swimming championship in April 1943, University of Michigan All American swimmer Harry Holiday, Jr. finally went head-to-head with world-record holder Adolph Kiefer. Holiday beat Kiefer in the 150-yard backstroke at the AAU meet. [8] The defeat was the first for Kiefer in eight years. [9] [10]

In his first two months of varsity competition, Holiday broke two of Adolph Kiefer’s world records, lowering the 100-yard backstroke mark to 57 seconds and the 200-meter standard to 2:22.9. [11] In August 1943, the NCAA also recognized Holiday as the holder of the new world record in the 150-yard backstroke with a mark of 1:31.5. [12]

Shortly thereafter, Adolph Kiefer was asked to audition for the role of "Tarzan", but answered the call of arms instead, joining the US Navy to serve as a chief petty officer. He quickly moved through the ranks, becoming a first lieutenant by the war’s end.

When the Navy realized that it was losing more lives to drowning than to enemy bullets, Kiefer was appointed to a committee to set new guidelines for safety and training. During the remainder of his service, Adolph taught more than 33,000 navymen how to survive in the water. In 1946, Kiefer established Adolph Kiefer & Associates in Chicago, which has been providing swimmers with training and safety equipment ever since. His company was responsible for the development of the Nylon Tank Suit in 1948, a marked improvement over the wool and cotton suits available at the time.

Kiefer subsequently devoted himself to community service, combining swimming and philanthropy in extremely innovative ways. In the 1960s, he worked with Mayor Richard J. Daley to build swimming pools across the inner city of Chicago, providing the facilities needed for thousands of children to both learn to swim and come together as a community. Kiefer has continued in such a mindset even today, participating in SAA events well into his seventies and eighties.

International Swimming Hall of Fame honoree.

References

* [http://www.examiner.com/a-1464493~Former_Olympian_still_swimming_at_90.html Olympian still swimming at ninety]
* [http://www.kiefer.com/Kiefer/assets/html/history.asp History of Adolph Kiefer]
* [http://www.hickoksports.com/biograph/kieferadolph.shtml Biography of Adolph Kiefer]
* [http://www.ihsa.org/activity/swb/records/ybyyr1.htm Illinois High School Assn boy swim and dive medalists]
* [http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=93539864 The Swimming Legend You Never Heard Of] , npr