Rudolf Schrader (also spelled Rudolph) (March 17, 1875 – January 18, 1981) 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 ...

who competed at 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 ...

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

. As a member of the Turnverein Vorwärts club he placed seventh in the team all-around and participated in three individual events, his best finish being 68th in the gymnastic triathlon. Born in Germany, Schrader moved to the United States at the age of 15 and worked as a cabinetmaker while training as a gymnast. After the Olympics he joined

Sears Sears, Roebuck and Co. ( ), commonly known as Sears, is an American chain of department stores founded in 1892 by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck and reincorporated in 1906 by Richard Sears and Julius Rosenwald, with what began a ...

and remained with them until his retirement at the age of 65. Until he was surpassed by

Walter Walsh Walter Rudolph Walsh (May 4, 1907 – April 29, 2014) was an FBI agent, USMC shooting instructor and Olympic shooter. Walsh joined the FBI in 1934, serving during the Public enemy era, and was involved in several high-profile FBI case ...

in March 2013, Schrader was the longest-lived Olympian, having died in January 1981 at the age of 105.

Early life

Schrader was born in

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; nds, label=Low Saxon, Meideborg ) is the capital and second-largest city of the German state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is situated at the Elbe river. Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archdiocese of Magdebur ...

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 ...

on March 17, 1875. He joined the Arbeiter Turnverein gymnastics club and took up a job as an apprentice cabinetmaker, but later traveled to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

with financial backing from relatives who already lived in the United States. There he soon joined the Turnverein Vorwärts club and resumed his participation in gymnastics, working as a cabinetmaker to repay his passage debts.

Athletic career

Schrader participated in his first local Turnfest, a German gymnastics tournament, as a senior in 1895 and his first national one in 1897. After participating at the 1900 national Turnfest, he competed in the

, where he finished seventh out of thirteen American clubs in the men's team event. Individually he placed 84th in the men's all-around, 68th in the gymnastic men's triathlon, and joint-95th in the athletic men's triathlon. He later held several administrative positions on the boards of various athletic clubs.

Later life

Schrader worked as a cabinetmaker for

from 1906 until his 1940 retirement. He turned 100 in March 1975 and was still riding a bicycle at the age of 103. He died in

Berwyn, Illinois Berwyn is a suburban city in Cook County, Illinois, coterminous with Berwyn Township, which was formed in 1908 after breaking off from Cicero Township. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 57,250. History Before being s ...

on January 18, 1981, at the age of 105 years, 307 days, making him the longest lived Olympian. He held that title for over 32 years, until he was surpassed in age by Olympic shooter

of the United States in March 2013.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Schrader, Rudolf 1875 births 1981 deaths American male artistic gymnasts Emigrants from the German Empire to the United States Olympic gymnasts for the United States Gymnasts at the 1904 Summer Olympics American men centenarians