Joseph Kotys (October 31, 1925 – August 21, 2012) was an American artistic gymnast. He was a member of the United States men's national artistic gymnastics team and won a team gold medal and three individual medals at the 1955 Pan American Games. At the 1948 Summer Olympics, he placed seventh with the team and had his best individual result of twenty-third place on pommel horse.

Joe Kotys
Kotys in 1949
Personal information
Full nameJoseph Kotys
Country representedUnited States
Born(1925-10-31)October 31, 1925
Olyphant, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedAugust 21, 2012(2012-08-21) (aged 86)
Florida, U.S.
DisciplineMen's artistic gymnastics
GymSwiss Turners
College teamKent State Golden Flashes
Medal record
Representing  United States
Men's artistic gymnastics
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Pan American Games 2 2 2
Total 2 2 2
Pan American Games
Gold medal – first place 1955 Mexico City Team
Gold medal – first place 1955 Mexico City Vault
Silver medal – second place 1955 Mexico City All-around
Silver medal – second place 1955 Mexico City Floor
Bronze medal – third place 1955 Mexico City Pommel horse
Bronze medal – third place 1955 Mexico City Horizontal bar
Representing Kent State Golden Flashes
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
NCAA Championships 6 0 0
Total 6 0 0
NCAA Championships
Gold medal – first place 1949 Berkeley All-around
Gold medal – first place 1949 Berkeley Parallel bars
Gold medal – first place 1950 West Point All-around
Gold medal – first place 1950 West Point Parallel bars
Gold medal – first place 1950 West Point Horizontal bar
Gold medal – first place 1951 Ann Arbor Pommel horse

Formative years

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Kotys fought in World War II as a gunner on a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress and completed twenty-two missions. He attended Kent State University and was a member of the Kent State Golden Flashes men's swimming and diving and men's gymnastics teams. As a diver he won the Ohio Conference three times, and as a gymnast, he won National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) titles in the all-around in 1949–50, on parallel bars in 1949–50, on the horizontal bar in 1950, and on the pommel horse in 1951. He also won three Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) titles, in the vault in 1948 and on parallel bars in 1948 and 1951. While competing on rings at the 1956 U.S. Olympic Trials he crashed to the floor due to a failed support mount.

Professional life

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Kotys retired shortly after his injury in the U.S. Olympic Trials and became a gymnastics coach in Ohio. In 1978, he was inducted into the U.S. Gymnastics Hall of Fame. During the early 1960s, he was a gymnastics coach in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio.

Kotys was a member of Swiss Turners of Cleveland.[1]

Death

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Ailing with pancreatic cancer, Kotys died from cancer-related complications in Florida on August 21, 2012.[2]

References

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  1. ^ McCarron, Rosemary (May 2, 1948). "Bordo, Bonsall On Olympic Team". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. S3. Retrieved November 22, 2023.
  2. ^ Normile, Dwight (August 24, 2012). "Former U.S. Olympian Joe Kotys Passes Away". International Gymnast Magazine. Archived from the original on August 29, 2017. Retrieved November 22, 2023.
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