Lee Pearce Orr (April 12, 1917 – July 27, 2009) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

athlete An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-devel ...

who competed in the

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (German: ''Olympische Sommerspiele 1936''), officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad (German: ''Spiele der XI. Olympiade'') and commonly known as Berlin 1936 or the Nazi Olympics, were an international multi-sp ...

. He was born in

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

, Canada and grew up in

Monroe, Washington Monroe is a city in Snohomish County, Washington, United States. It is located at the confluence of the Skykomish, Snohomish, and Snoqualmie rivers near the Cascade foothills, about northeast of Seattle. Monroe's population was 19,699 as of ...

, United States. During high school, he participated in track and field events, as well as football and tennis. After high school, Orr ran for the

Washington State University Washington State University (Washington State, WSU, or informally Wazzu) is a public land-grant research university with its flagship, and oldest, campus in Pullman, Washington. Founded in 1890, WSU is also one of the oldest land-grant unive ...

Cougars, where he was coached by

Karl Schlademan Karl L. Schlademan (February 11, 1890 – December 22, 1980) was an American college sports coach and athletics administrator. Principally a track and field coach, Schlademan also coached football, basketball and cross country. He served as the ...

. He worked as a stock boy for $35 a month to get through school in the days before athletic scholarships. The six-foot, 175 pound freshman dazzled his coaches. He went on to eight Pacific Coast North Division titles and an NCAA championship in the 440-yard run. And he and his brother Jack ran with the Cougar relay team that set a world record in June, 1937. Orr was inducted into the Washington Athletic Hall of Fame. In 1936 at the Berlin Olympics, he finished fifth in the

200 metre The 200 metres, or 200-meter dash, is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 metre racetrack, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques is needed to successfully run the race. A slightly ...

event but equaled the world record during the quarterfinals. He was also a member of the Canadian relay team which finished fifth in the Men's

4 x 100 metres relay 4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures. In mathematics Four is the smallest c ...

. In the

100 metres The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been conteste ...

contest he was eliminated in the first round. At the 1938 Empire Games he won the gold medal with the Canadian team in the 4×440 yards relay event. In the

440-yard dash The 440-yard dash, or quarter-mile race, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. In many countries, athletes compete in the 440 yard dash (402.336 m) – which corresponds to a quarter mile. Many athletic tracks are 440 yards ...

competition he was eliminated in the heats. Orr enlisted in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and worked for the Hormel Meat Company before retiring to Monroe.

References

External links

Lee Orr's profile at Sports Reference.comBiography of Lee Orr
1917 births 2009 deaths Canadian male sprinters Olympic track and field athletes for Canada Athletes (track and field) at the 1936 Summer Olympics Sportspeople from Saskatchewan Athletes (track and field) at the 1938 British Empire Games Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Canada Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics Washington State University alumni Washington State Cougars men's track and field athletes People from Monroe, Washington Sportspeople from Snohomish County, Washington United States Army personnel of World War II Medallists at the 1938 British Empire Games {{Canada-athletics-bio-stub