John Terpak
John Terpak in 1945
Born
John Basil Terpak

(1912-07-04)July 4, 1912
Mayfield, Pennsylvania, United States
DiedJune 1, 1993(1993-06-01) (aged 80)
Springettsbury Township, Pennsylvania, United States
SpouseMildred Louis Bulk
Children2[1]
Sports career
Medal record
Men's weightlifting
Representing the  United States
World Championships
Gold medal – first place1937 Paris Middleweight
Gold medal – first place1947 Philadelphia Light heavyweight
Silver medal – second place1946 Paris Middleweight
Bronze medal – third place1938 Vienna Middleweight

John Basil Terpak (July 4, 1912 – June 1, 1993) was an American world champion weightlifter.[2]

Early life

Terpak's father was Ukrainian-born and worked in Pennsylvania's coal mines. Terpak pursued weightlifting in his youth and was noticed by Bob Hoffman in 1935 when he won the Junior Nationals lightweight class in Philadelphia. Hoffman recruited Terpak to work for York Barbell, where he became general manager in 1939.[3]

Olympic results

Terpak finished 5th at the 1936 Summer Olympics and 4th at the 1948 Summer Olympics.[4]

World Championship results

He won a gold medal at the 1937 World Weightlifting Championships and 1947 World Weightlifting Championships, a bronze medal at the 1938 World Weightlifting Championships, and a silver medal at the 1946 World Weightlifting Championships.[5]

Coaching

Terpak was a U.S. Olympic coach in 1968 and 1972.[3] He was also a coach for two-time Olympic champion Charles Vinci.[4]

In December 1969, Terpak and weightlifters Bob Hoffman, Joe Dube, and Bob Bednarski from the 1968 Summer Olympics met with President Richard Nixon for seven minutes at the White House along with Pennsylvania congressman George Atlee Goodling.[6]

Personal life

He was a vice president, CEO, and chairman of the board at York Barbell.[3][7]

References

  1. ↑ Roark, Joe (September 1993). "John Terpak: 1912–1993" (PDF). Iron Game History. Vol. 3, no. 1. Retrieved 2018-09-22 – via H.J. Lutcher Stark Center for Physical Culture and Sports.
  2. ↑ "John Terpak". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 2020-04-18. Retrieved 2018-09-22.
  3. 1 2 3 Fair, John (1992). "John Terpak's 80th Birthday: A York Reunion" (PDF). Iron Game History. 2 (4).
  4. 1 2 "Vinci Was the Last to Succeed : U.S. Has Not Won Weightlifting Gold Since 1960 Games". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. 1988-09-25. Retrieved 2016-01-22.
  5. ↑ "John Terpak, Top Olympic Lifters of the 20th Century @ Lift Up". Chidlovski.net. Retrieved 2016-01-22.
  6. ↑ "President Richard Nixon's Daily Diary" (PDF). White House. 1969-12-01. p. 2. Retrieved 2018-09-22.
  7. ↑ Goldwasser, Thomas (1986-09-21). "Pumping Iron, Not Concrete". The New York Times. Retrieved 2016-01-22.
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