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 place1955 Mexico CityTeam
Gold medal – first place1955 Mexico CityVault
Silver medal – second place1955 Mexico CityAll-Around
Silver medal – second place1955 Mexico CityFloor
Bronze medal – third place1955 Mexico CityPommel Horse
Bronze medal – third place1955 Mexico CityHorizontal Bar
Representing Kent State Golden Flashes
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
NCAA Championships 6 0 0
Total 6 0 0
NCAA Championships
Gold medal – first place1949 BerkeleyAll-Around
Gold medal – first place1949 BerkeleyParallel Bars
Gold medal – first place1950 West PointAll-Around
Gold medal – first place1950 West PointParallel Bars
Gold medal – first place1950 West PointHorizontal Bar
Gold medal – first place1951 Ann ArborPommel Horse

Joseph Kotys (October 31, 1925 – August 21, 2012) was an American artistic gymnast. He 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 23rd place on pommel horse.

Kotys fought in World War II as a gunner on a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress and completed 22 missions. He also competed as a diver and won the Ohio Conference three times. As a gymnast, he won the NCAA titles 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 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. He retired soon after that to become a gymnastics coach in Ohio. In 1978 he was inducted into the U.S. Gymnastics Hall of Fame. He was the gymnastics coach at Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio in the early 1960s.

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

Kotys died of pancreatic cancer on August 21, 2012.[2]

References

  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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