Weightlifting
b. June 29, 1929, Akron, OH
George won medals at three Olympics and he was a five-time world champion. In 1948, he needed to clean and jerk 165 kilograms (363 pounds), 5 kilograms more than the world middleweight record, to beat Frank Spellman of the U. S. for the gold medal. George cleaned the weight but couldn't hold it over his head long enough, and settled for the silver medal.
He won the gold medal in 1952 and another silver medal in 1956. George was the U. S. lightweight champion in 1946, at only seventeen, and he won the middleweight championship from 1949 through 1952 and 1957. From 1947 through 1956, he won five world championships and finished second twice, and he was the Pan-American Games middleweight champion in 1951 and 1955.
George graduated from Kent State University and received a degree in dentistry from Ohio State. After serving as a dentist in the U. S. Army, he moved to Hawaii to practice orthodontics.
Top of Page
|
