George Varoff

George Dimitri Varoff (March 25 1914 – January 10 2002) was an American pole vaulter.

Early life

Varoff was born in Hawaii to Ukrainian immigrants and grew up in San Francisco, where he competed for Balboa High School.cite journal|title = Records at Princeton|journal = Time Magazine|date = July 13, 1936|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,756427,00.html|accessdate = 2007-10-10] cite web|url=http://www.dyestatcal.com/ATHLETICS/TRACK/sf_res.htm|title=San Francisco (AAA) Finals - 1915 thru 2002|publisher=Dystatcal.com|accessdate=2007-10-10] After high school, he attended the University of Oregon to train under track coach Bill Hayward.cite web|url=http://robots.cnnsi.com/athletics/news/2002/01/26/obit_varoff_ap/|title=Ex-pole vaulter Varoff dead at 87|work=CNNSI.com|accessdate=2007-10-10]

World record

On July 4 1936, Varoff vaulted ft in to m|14|6.5|precision=2 to set a new world record. However, his record came a week before the Olympic trials, and in the trials, he failed to qualify for the United States team for the 1936 Olympics. Varoff went on to win Amateur Athletic Union pole vaulting titles in 1936, 1937, and 1939,cite web|url=http://sportshistory.uoregon.edu/details/show/8|title=Leadership and Legacy: Early Era Stars|publisher=University of Oregon|accessdate=2007-10-10] but with the cancellation of the 1940 and 1944 Olympics due to World War II, never competed in the Olympics.

World War II

Varoff joined the United States Army Air Forces during World War II and achieved the rank of Captain. His B-29 was shot down over China and reported as missing in action on December 7 1944. He returned safely to his base six weeks later.cite web|url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F30713FF355C1B7B93C5A8178AD85F418485F9|title=Capt. George Varoff safe|date=January 17, 1945|work=New York Times|accessdate=2007-10-10] He later reported that he and his crew had to bail out over China following a bombing mission.cite web|url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F50B1EFF3C5F1B7B93C4A9178FD85F418485F9|work=New York Times|title=Card Farm Pitcher Cited|date=April 6, 1945|accessdate=2007-10-10]

Legacy

Following the war, Varoff returned to San Francisco. He was inducted into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame in 1982.cite web|url=http://www.oregonsportshall.com/inductee/roll/trackField.htm|title=Inductees: Track and Field|publisher=Oregon Sports Hall of Fame and Museum|accessdate=2007-10-10] He died in San Antonio, Texas on January 10 2002.

References