Pedro "Pete" Velasco Jr. (April 6, 1937 – March 21, 2023) was an American

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

player who competed with the United States national volleyball team as captain in 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 ...

, and also competed with the national team in 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 ...

. He won a silver medal at the

1963 Pan American Games The 1963 Pan American Games were held from April 20 to May 5, 1963, in São Paulo, Brazil. Host city selection For the first time, two cities submitted bids to host the 1963 Pan American Games that were recognized by the Pan American Sports O ...

and a gold medal at the

1967 Pan American Games The 1967 Pan American Games were held in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, from July 23 to August 6, 1967. Winnipeg was chosen as host of the Pan American Games on its second try. It first bid for the 1963 Games at the 1959 PASO meeting in Chicago ...

. He was a setter. Velasco was born in

Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island o ...

, on April 6, 1937. He died on March 21, 2023, at the age of 85. Velasco was inducted into the

International Volleyball Hall of Fame The International Volleyball Hall of Fame (IVHF) was founded to honor extraordinary players, coaches, officials, and leaders who have made significant contributions to the game of volleyball. The Hall of Fame is located in Holyoke, Massachusetts ...

in 1997.

References

External links

International Volleyball Hall of Fame Profile

Olympedia Profile: Pedro Velasco

{{DEFAULTSORT:Velasco, Pedro 1937 births 2023 deaths American men's volleyball players Olympic volleyball players for the United States Volleyball players at the 1964 Summer Olympics Volleyball players at the 1968 Summer Olympics Volleyball players at the 1967 Pan American Games Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States Pan American Games silver medalists for the United States Volleyball players at the 1963 Pan American Games Pan American Games medalists in volleyball Medalists at the 1963 Pan American Games