Kiefer, Adolph G.
Swimming
b. June 27, 1918, Chicago, IL
The first swimmer to break the 1-minute barrier in the 100-yard backstroke, Kiefer won a gold medal in the 100-meter event at the 1936 Olympics. He continued competing until 1946 and probably would have won more medals, except that there were no Olympic Games in 1940 or 1944 because of World War II.
Kiefer won the AAU outdoor 100-meter backstroke nine years in a row, from 1935 through 1943, and was the 220-yard freestyle champion in 1938. He also won the 300-meter individual medley event in 1938, 1939, and 1943.
Indoors, he won AAU championships in the 150-yard back stroke from 1935 through 1937, from 1939 through 1942, and in 1944 and 1945, and in the 300-yard individual medley from 1940 through 1942, and in 1944 and 1945.
After he retired from swimming, Kiefer was put in charge of swimming instruction for the U. S. Navy, because of the number of deaths by drowning that occurred during the war. He also founded a company, Adolph Kiefer & Associates, that manufactures and sells swimming and pool equipment.