IWF120y/58 – 1964: Norbert Schemansky clinches fourth Olympic medal!

Norbert Schemansky was already 40 when in 1964 in Tokyo he became the first lifter in history to win four Olympic medals! In the Japanese capital, the US champion, competing in the +90kg category, clinched the bronze, 16 years after his first achievement at this level. Born in 1924, he first got noticed in 1947, after finishing second at the World Championships. In London 1948, at his first Olympics, he was also the runner-up, but four years later, in Helsinki (FIN), he climbed to the highest march of the podium, triumphing in 127.5-140-177.5-445. He skipped the 1956 edition in Melbourne (he was injured), but in Rome 1960, he earned bronze. For his last podium presence in Tokyo, he got his best Olympic performance, lifting 180-165-192.5-537.5. At world level, and after his 1947 achievement, he was crowned champion in 1951, 1953, and 1954. In the 1962 and 1963 editions, he added two silver medals to his impressive roll of honour. Having served in the US Army during World War II, Schemansky fought in the Battle of the Bulge, on European soil. He then worked as a fireman in the US, but was fired when actively preparing for the 1952 Olympics. After his retirement – he had an amazingly long career, from 1947 to 1972, improving 24 World Records on the way – Schemansky worked as a civil engineer. Native from the region of Detroit (Michigan), the US ace died in September 2016, aged 92.