Chester Andrew Jastremski (January 12, 1941 – May 3, 2014) was an American competition

swimmer Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...

, Olympic medalist and world record-holder. Jastremski attended

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universit ...

in Bloomington, Indiana, where he swam for Doc Counsilman's

Indiana Hoosiers The Indiana Hoosiers are the intercollegiate sports teams and players of Indiana University Bloomington, named after the colloquial term for people from the state of Indiana. The Hoosiers participate in NCAA Division I, Division I of the Nationa ...

swimming and diving team. He and Counsilman invented the "whip kick" to replace the

frog kick Finning techniques are the skills and methods used by swimmers and underwater divers to propel themselves through the water and to maneuver when wearing swimfins. There are several styles used for propulsion, some of which are more suited to p ...

, previously used in the

breaststroke Breaststroke is a swimming style in which the swimmer is on their chest and the torso does not rotate. It is the most popular recreational style due to the swimmer's head being out of the water a large portion of the time, and that it can be s ...

. The whip kick minimized drag and accentuated Jastremski's very powerful shoulders and upper arms. Over the years, the original whip kick (done from the knee to feet) morphed into the breaststroke kick that uses the entire leg. He was featured on the January 29, 1962 cover of ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twic ...

''. At the

1964 Summer Olympics The , officially the and commonly known as Tokyo 1964 ( ja, 東京1964), were an international multi-sport event held from 10 to 24 October 1964 in Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo had been awarded the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this ho ...

in Tokyo, Jastremski represented the United States. He won the bronze medal in the men's 200-meter breaststroke, finishing with a third-place time of 2:29.6. He again qualified for the U.S. team for the

1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1968), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XIX Olimpiada) and commonly known as Mexico 1968 ( es, México 1968), were an international multi-sport eve ...

in Mexico City, and swam for the winning American team in the preliminary heats of the men's 4×100-meter medley relay. He was inducted into the

International Swimming Hall of Fame The International Swimming Hall of Fame and Museum (ISHOF) is a history museum and hall of fame, located at One Hall of Fame Drive, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States, operated by private interests and serving as the central point for the s ...

in 1977, and the National Polish American Sports Hall of Fame in 2007. Jastremski received his medical degree from

in 1968, where he was also a member of

Sigma Nu Fraternity Sigma Nu () is an undergraduate college fraternity founded at the Virginia Military Institute on January 1, 1869. The fraternity was founded by James Frank Hopkins, Greenfield Quarles and James McIlvaine Riley shortly after Hopkins witnessed w ...

. He was a member of the 1976 U.S. Olympic medical team. He served as a family practice physician for 35 years before

rheumatoid arthritis Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a long-term autoimmune disorder that primarily affects joints. It typically results in warm, swollen, and painful joints. Pain and stiffness often worsen following rest. Most commonly, the wrist and hands are involv ...

led him to retire. He practiced medicine in Bloomington, Indiana, and frequently visited the Indiana University swim team throughout the years. In 2007, he was inducted into the

National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame The National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame and Museum was founded in 1973. The mission of the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame is to recognize and preserve outstanding achievement by individuals of Polish heritage in the field o ...

. He died on May 3, 2014, aged 73, in Bloomington, after battling cancer, arthritis, and

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. The symptoms usually emerge slowly, and as the disease worsens, non-motor symptoms becom ...

. College swimming: Jastremski dies at 73
''South Bend Tribune'' (May 6, 2014). Retrieved May 10, 2014.

References

External links

* * *
www.toledoblade.com

''Sports Illustrated''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jastremski, Chet 1941 births 2014 deaths American male breaststroke swimmers American male medley swimmers American people of Polish descent Physicians from Indiana Deaths from cancer in Indiana Neurological disease deaths in Indiana Deaths from arthritis Deaths from Parkinson's disease World record setters in swimming Indiana Hoosiers men's swimmers Indiana University School of Medicine alumni Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in swimming Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States Sportspeople from Toledo, Ohio Swimmers at the 1963 Pan American Games Swimmers at the 1964 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 1968 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1964 Summer Olympics Pan American Games medalists in swimming Medalists at the 1963 Pan American Games 20th-century American people 21st-century American people

See also

References

External links