Max Hess (December 29, 1877 – June 22, 1969) was an American

gymnast Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, sh ...

and

track and field athlete Track and field is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of ...

who competed in the

1904 Summer Olympics The 1904 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the III Olympiad and also known as St. Louis 1904) were an international multi-sport event held in St. Louis, Missouri, United States, from 29 August to 3 September 1904, as part of an extended s ...

in St. Louis. He was born in

Coburg Coburg () is a town located on the Itz river in the Upper Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany. Long part of one of the Thuringian states of the Wettin line, it joined Bavaria by popular vote only in 1920. Until the revolution of 1918, it was ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, and came to America at an early age, settling in Philadelphia. In 1904 he won the gold medal in gymnastics in the team event. He was also 10th in athletics' triathlon event, 31st in gymnastics' all-around competition and 50th in gymnastics' triathlon event. He was affiliated with Philadelphia's well-known Turngemeinde Athletic Club, a successful organization that sent seven other athletes to the 1904 Olympics. The Turngemeinde was one of the oldest German-American Turner, or gymnastics clubs in the United States, and was founded in 1849. An extensive club, it originally taught gymnastics, fencing, singing, drawing, writing and ladies' needlework. Helping German immigrants acclimate to life in America, the club also offered social events, including an annual ball and originally maintained a lending library. In July 1908, he competed again and made a good showing in both all round gymnastics competition and field sports in St. Louis at the International Gymnastics Tournament at Frankfort-on-the-Main. In Philadelphia, he worked at Hess and Young, the family company store, specializing in printing and bookbinding services, where in the 1940's he was in business with his relatives Carl and George. The family company was in business as early as 1900,and continues to specialize in platemaking services for printing and bookbinding. He died in Philadelphia on June 22, 1969, and was predeceased by his wife Clara Hierholzer."Obituaries, Hess", ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'', Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, pg. 34, 25 June 1969

References

1877 births 1969 deaths American male artistic gymnasts Athletes (track and field) at the 1904 Summer Olympics Gymnasts at the 1904 Summer Olympics Olympic gymnasts for the United States Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field Olympic medalists in gymnastics Medalists at the 1904 Summer Olympics American male triathletes 20th-century American people {{US-Olympic-medalist-stub