Ralph Myer Goldstein (October 6, 1913 – July 25, 1997) was an American Olympic épée fencer.

Early and personal life

Goldstein was born in Malden, Massachusetts, and was Jewish."Goldstein, Ralph,"
''Jews In Sports''. He grew up on the Lower East Side in Manhattan, New York, and attended Brooklyn College, fencing for the college's fencing team. He lived in

Yonkers Yonkers () is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. Developed along the Hudson River, it is the third most populous city in the state of New York (state), New York, after New York City and Buffalo, New York, Buffalo. The popul ...

, New York, and in

Waterbury, Connecticut Waterbury is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut on the Naugatuck River, southwest of Hartford and northeast of New York City. Waterbury is the second-largest city in New Haven County, Connecticut. According to the 2020 US Census, in 20 ...

, from 1948 on. He was killed in a car accident in July 1997, at the age of 83, when Goldstein had a heart attack and his car collided in a head-on collision with a propane truck outside

Bennington, Vermont Bennington is a town in Bennington County, Vermont, United States. It is one of two shire towns (county seats) of the county, the other being Manchester. As of the 2020 US Census, the population was 15,333. Bennington is the most populous t ...

Fencing career

Goldstein competed for the United States in the team

épée The ( or , ), sometimes spelled epee in English, is the largest and heaviest of the three weapons used in the sport of fencing. The modern derives from the 19th-century , a weapon which itself derives from the French small sword. This contain ...

events at the

1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and also known as London 1948) were an international multi-sport event held from 29 July to 14 August 1948 in London, England, United Kingdom. Following a twelve-year hiatus ca ...

in London and the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, and was captain of the team at the

1960 Summer Olympics The 1960 Summer Olympics ( it, Giochi Olimpici estivi del 1960), officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad ( it, Giochi della XVII Olimpiade) and commonly known as Rome 1960 ( it, Roma 1960), were an international multi-sport event held ...

in Rome. He won Amateur Fencers League of America (AFLA) titles in team épée with Salle Santelli in 1947-48, 1950, 1953, and 1955, and won team 3-weapon titles in 1952-54. Goldstein also competed in many of the Maccabiah Games in Israel, the Olympic-style competition for Jewish athletes. He won a silver medal in epee at the 1953 Maccabiah Games, losing in the finals to Great Britain's world champion runner-up

Allan Jay Allan Louis Neville Jay MBE (born 30 June 1931) is a British former five-time-Olympian foil and épée fencer, and world champion. Early life Jay was born in London, England, and is Jewish. His father died fighting in World War II in 1943. He ...

. He was Secretary of the Amateur Fencers League of America (now the United States Fencing Association) from 1957-60. He was also Editor of ''American Fencing'' magazine from 1969-76. Goldstein was inducted into the US Fencing Hall of Fame. In 1988 he was also named a Referee Emeritus, the highest honor for USA Fencing referees, awarded for multiple Olympic experience and great service to the sport of fencing in the national and international arenas, thereby retaining his USA Fencing referee rating for life.">"Referee Emeriti" » Referees' Commission
/ref> The Ralph Goldstein Memorial Épée Open is held annually in his honor.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Goldstein, Ralph 1913 births 1997 deaths American male épée fencers Olympic fencers of the United States Fencers at the 1948 Summer Olympics Fencers at the 1956 Summer Olympics Sportspeople from Malden, Massachusetts People from the Lower East Side People from Yonkers, New York Sportspeople from Waterbury, Connecticut Jewish male épée fencers Jewish male foil fencers Jewish male sabre fencers Jewish American sportspeople Maccabiah Games medalists in fencing Maccabiah Games silver medalists for the United States Competitors at the 1953 Maccabiah Games Sportspeople from New York City Brooklyn College alumni Road incident deaths in Vermont 20th-century American Jews