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Sammy Lee (diver)

October 27, 2023

Samuel Lee (August 1, 1920 – December 2, 2016) was an American physician and diver. He was the first Asian American man to win an Olympic gold medal for the United States (the second Asian American to win a gold medal overall)[2] and the first man to win back-to-back gold medals in Olympic platform diving.

Sammy Lee
Lee at the 1952 Olympics
Personal information
Full nameSamuel Lee
NationalityAmerican
Born(1920-08-01)August 1, 1920
Fresno, California, U.S.[1]
DiedDecember 2, 2016(2016-12-02) (aged 96)
Newport Beach, California, U.S.
Resting placeFort Rosecrans National Cemetery
Alma materOccidental College (B.S.)
University of Southern California School of Medicine (M.D.)
Spouse(s)Rosalind Wong
Military career
Allegiance United States of America
Service/branch United States Army Medical Corps
Years of service1947-1955
Rank Major
Sport
CountryUnited States
SportDiving
Medal record

Early life and education edit

Lee was born in Fresno, California to parents of Korean descent who owned what he described as "a little chop suey restaurant".[3] His father was fluent in English and Korean, tutored in French, graduated with a degree in civil engineering from Occidental College, and opened a chop suey restaurant and market. As a twelve-year-old living near Los Angeles in 1932, Lee saw and was motivated by the many Olympics banners and souvenirs on display for the Summer Olympics being held in Los Angeles that year. Later that summer, he found that he could do somersaults much better than all of his friends, which led to his goal of becoming an Olympic champion in diving.[4]

Lee's parents moved to Highland Park, a neighborhood of Los Angeles. At the time, however, Latinos, Asians and African-Americans were only allowed to use the nearby Brookside Park Plunge in Pasadena on Wednesdays, on what was called "international day,” the day before the pool was scheduled to be drained and refilled with clean water. Because Lee needed a place to practice and could not regularly use the public pool, his coach dug a pit in his backyard and filled it with sand.[5][6][7] Lee practiced by jumping into the pit.[8]

Lee attended Franklin High School and later was a student-athlete at Occidental, where he received his undergraduate degree before attending the University of Southern California School of Medicine, where he received his M.D. in 1947.[9] He joined the Army Reserve to pay for his medical school tuition.[10]

Diving career edit

 
Lee with Miller Anderson in 1948

Under the tutelage of renowned diving coach Jim Ryan, Lee won the United States National Diving Championships in 1942 in both the 3-meter springboard and the 10-meter platform events, becoming the first person of color to capture the United States national championship in diving. In 1946, he again triumphed at the 10-meter platform event while finishing third at the 3-meter springboard competition at the national diving competition in San Diego.[4]

At the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, England, Lee earned a bronze medal in the 3-meter springboard and a gold medal in 10-meter platform diving events.[1][4] In so doing, he became the second Asian American to earn a gold medal, behind only Vicki Draves, who won an Olympic gold medal two days earlier in springboard diving.[11]

Military and medical careers edit

Four years later, by then a major in the United States Army Medical Corps, he expected to serve in the Korean War, but he was instead sent to compete in the Olympic Games ("but you better win", he was told).[10] He won the gold medal in the 10-meter platform competition at the Olympics in Helsinki, Finland.[1][4]

Lee served in the U.S. Army Medical Corps in South Korea from 1953 to 1955, where he specialized in diseases of the ear.[1] In 1953, while serving his tour of duty in Korea, he won the James E. Sullivan Award in 1953, which is awarded annually by the Amateur Athletic Union to the most outstanding amateur athlete in the United States.[9]

He continued to experience discrimination in later life. In 1954, he faced housing discrimination in Garden Grove, California, where he attempted to buy a home only to be told that he could not, and in one case having nearby residents gather petition signatures to "disallow" or discourage him from buying in "their" neighborhood. (In the latter case, a counterpetition sought to rectify this prejudice, but the discriminatory effect had been achieved, and Lee looked elsewhere.)[12][13]

Lee practiced as an ear, nose and throat doctor for 35 years before retiring in 1990.[14]

Coaching edit

Following Lee's diving career, he helped coach two-time diving gold medalist Bob Webster. Later, he coached Greg Louganis, who lived with Lee's family before winning a silver medal in platform diving at the 1976 Olympics at the age of 16.[15] Lee also coached Olympic medalist Pat McCormick.[16]

In 1979, Lee played himself in Silent Victory: The Kitty O'Neil Story, about stuntwoman Kitty O'Neil, whom Lee had coached in diving.[17] In 1996 Lee was interviewed by Huell Howser in California's Gold Episode 702.[18]

Honors and awards edit

Lee was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1968, and was inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame in 1990.[9][19]

Sammy Lee Square, at the corner of Olympic Boulevard and Normandie Avenue in Los Angeles' Koreatown, was named after him in 2010.[16][20][21][22] He was also honored with a spot on the Anaheim/Orange County Walk of Stars in 2009.[23] The Los Angeles Unified School District honored Lee by renaming Central Region Elementary School #20 as the Dr. Sammy Lee Medical and Health Sciences Magnet School in 2013.[24][25]

Personal life and death edit

Lee was married to Rosalind Wong;[9] the couple had a daughter and had a son.[26] Lee died from complications of pneumonia on December 2, 2016 at his home in Newport Beach, California, aged 96.[27] He also suffered from dementia and heart disease.[28]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. . Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on April 17, 2020.
  2. ^ Almasy, Steve (August 22, 2008). "After 60 years, Olympians are fast friends again". CNN.
  3. ^ Williams, Juan & Halberstam, David (2004). My Soul Looks Back in Wonder: Voices of the Civil Rights Experience. Sterling. ISBN 9781402722332. OCLC 61848837.
  4. ^ a b c d Aquitania, Ray E. M.D. (2011). Jock-Docs: World-Class Athletes Wearing White Coats. ISBN 9781609106126. OCLC 743113688.
  5. ^ Baker, Chris (June 16, 1990). "Physical, Spiritual Blights Are Eliminated : Swimming: Pasadena's new aquatic complex replaces an eyesore, lays to rest memories of racism for former Olympian". Los Angeles Times.
  6. ^ Zarnow, Teryl (October 20, 2011). "Oral history? Telling it like it was". Orange County Register.
  7. ^ Ortiz, Erik (November 18, 2006). "Diver shows how guts outweigh skin: The sport's first Asian-American to win Olympic gold tells pupils about bias and athletics". Orange County Register.
  8. ^ Margolis, Jane (2008). Stuck In the Shallow End: Education, Race and Computing. Massachusetts Institute of Technology Press. ISBN 9780262260961. OCLC 792730600.
  9. ^ a b c d McFadden, Robert (December 3, 2016). "Sammy Lee, First Asian-American to Earn Olympic Gold, Dies at 96". The New York Times.
  10. ^ a b Valerie J. Nelson, and Nathan Fenno (December 3, 2016). "Sammy Lee, diver who became first Asian American to win Olympic medal, dies at 96". Los Angeles Times.
  11. ^ Cabanilla, Devin Israel (December 15, 2016). "Media fail to give REAL first Asian American Olympic gold medalist her due". The Seattle Globalist. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
  12. ^ "Fair Housing In the Cold War Era". California State University, Fullerton. April 28, 2011.
  13. ^ (PDF). Fullerton Arboretum. May 4, 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 2, 2014. Retrieved August 4, 2012.
  14. ^ Bates, Karen Grigsby (December 5, 2016). "Sammy Lee Climbed Above Racism, Dove Into Olympic History". NPR.
  15. ^ Nelson, Valerie J. (December 3, 2016). "Asian American to win Olympic medal, dies at 96". The San Diego Union-Tribune.
  16. ^ a b Crowe, Jerry (May 30, 2011). "Lee never let racism block his march to diving glory". Los Angeles Times.
  17. ^ Wampler, Molly Frick (1987). Not Without Honor: The Story of Sammy Lee. Fithian Press. p. 213. ISBN 9780936784373.
  18. ^ "California Pools – California's Gold (702) – Huell Howser Archives at Chapman University". December 10, 1996.
  19. ^ "Sammy Lee One of Seven Inducted Into U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame : Diving: Huntington Beach doctor, who won gold medals in 1948 and '52, makes a splash during induction ceremony". Los Angeles Times. July 7, 1990.
  20. ^ . KBS World. August 6, 2010. Archived from the original on March 22, 2012. Retrieved August 14, 2010.
  21. ^ Sung-woo, Chun (August 9, 2010). "Sammy Lee Square dedicated in L.A. to honor diving legend". Korea Herald.
  22. ^ "City Council 10-1231" (PDF). Los Angeles City Council. July 22, 2010.
  23. ^ Tully, Sarah (May 26, 2009). . Orange County Register. Archived from the original on June 26, 2012.
  24. ^ "LAUSD starts new school year with promise, excitement". Los Angeles Daily News. August 13, 2013.
  25. ^ Plummer, Mary (May 15, 2013). "New name for South LA school 'Diego Rivera Learning Complex' flies under the radar". KPCC.
  26. ^ Nelson, Valerie J. & Fenno, Nathan (December 3, 2016). "Sammy Lee, diver who became first Asian American to win Olympic medal, dies at 96". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved December 4, 2016.
  27. ^ Sklar, Debbie (December 3, 2016). "First Asian American Olympic gold medalist dies in Newport Beach". MyNewsLA.com.
  28. ^ "Diving Legend Sammy Lee Passes Away At Age 96". Swimming World. December 3, 2016.

Further reading edit

  • Fernbach, Erika (2012). Sammy Lee: Promises to Keep. CreateSpace Independent Publishing. ISBN 978-1482614824. OCLC 984362037.
  • Wampler, Molly Frick (1987). Not Without Honor: The Story of Sammy Lee. Fithian Press. ISBN 978-0936784373. OCLC 16130952.
  • Yoo, Paula; Lee, Dom (2010). Sixteen Years in Sixteen Seconds: The Sammy Lee Story. Lee & Low Books. ISBN 978-1600604539. OCLC 700698663.

External links edit

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sammy Lee (diver).

October 27, 2023
sammy, diver, samuel, august, 1920, december, 2016, american, physician, diver, first, asian, american, olympic, gold, medal, united, states, second, asian, american, gold, medal, overall, first, back, back, gold, medals, olympic, platform, diving, sammy, leel. Samuel Lee August 1 1920 December 2 2016 was an American physician and diver He was the first Asian American man to win an Olympic gold medal for the United States the second Asian American to win a gold medal overall 2 and the first man to win back to back gold medals in Olympic platform diving Sammy LeeLee at the 1952 OlympicsPersonal informationFull nameSamuel LeeNationalityAmericanBorn 1920 08 01 August 1 1920Fresno California U S 1 DiedDecember 2 2016 2016 12 02 aged 96 Newport Beach California U S Resting placeFort Rosecrans National CemeteryAlma materOccidental College B S University of Southern California School of Medicine M D Spouse s Rosalind WongMilitary careerAllegiance United States of AmericaService wbr branchUnited States Army Medical CorpsYears of service1947 1955RankMajorSportCountryUnited StatesSportDivingMedal record Men s divingRepresenting the United StatesOlympic Games1948 London 10 m platform1952 Helsinki 10 m platform1948 London 3 m springboardPan American Games1951 Buenos Aires 10 m platform1951 Buenos Aires 3 m springboard Contents 1 Early life and education 2 Diving career 3 Military and medical careers 4 Coaching 5 Honors and awards 6 Personal life and death 7 See also 8 References 9 Further reading 10 External linksEarly life and education editLee was born in Fresno California to parents of Korean descent who owned what he described as a little chop suey restaurant 3 His father was fluent in English and Korean tutored in French graduated with a degree in civil engineering from Occidental College and opened a chop suey restaurant and market As a twelve year old living near Los Angeles in 1932 Lee saw and was motivated by the many Olympics banners and souvenirs on display for the Summer Olympics being held in Los Angeles that year Later that summer he found that he could do somersaults much better than all of his friends which led to his goal of becoming an Olympic champion in diving 4 Lee s parents moved to Highland Park a neighborhood of Los Angeles At the time however Latinos Asians and African Americans were only allowed to use the nearby Brookside Park Plunge in Pasadena on Wednesdays on what was called international day the day before the pool was scheduled to be drained and refilled with clean water Because Lee needed a place to practice and could not regularly use the public pool his coach dug a pit in his backyard and filled it with sand 5 6 7 Lee practiced by jumping into the pit 8 Lee attended Franklin High School and later was a student athlete at Occidental where he received his undergraduate degree before attending the University of Southern California School of Medicine where he received his M D in 1947 9 He joined the Army Reserve to pay for his medical school tuition 10 Diving career edit nbsp Lee with Miller Anderson in 1948Under the tutelage of renowned diving coach Jim Ryan Lee won the United States National Diving Championships in 1942 in both the 3 meter springboard and the 10 meter platform events becoming the first person of color to capture the United States national championship in diving In 1946 he again triumphed at the 10 meter platform event while finishing third at the 3 meter springboard competition at the national diving competition in San Diego 4 At the 1948 Summer Olympics in London England Lee earned a bronze medal in the 3 meter springboard and a gold medal in 10 meter platform diving events 1 4 In so doing he became the second Asian American to earn a gold medal behind only Vicki Draves who won an Olympic gold medal two days earlier in springboard diving 11 Military and medical careers editFour years later by then a major in the United States Army Medical Corps he expected to serve in the Korean War but he was instead sent to compete in the Olympic Games but you better win he was told 10 He won the gold medal in the 10 meter platform competition at the Olympics in Helsinki Finland 1 4 Lee served in the U S Army Medical Corps in South Korea from 1953 to 1955 where he specialized in diseases of the ear 1 In 1953 while serving his tour of duty in Korea he won the James E Sullivan Award in 1953 which is awarded annually by the Amateur Athletic Union to the most outstanding amateur athlete in the United States 9 He continued to experience discrimination in later life In 1954 he faced housing discrimination in Garden Grove California where he attempted to buy a home only to be told that he could not and in one case having nearby residents gather petition signatures to disallow or discourage him from buying in their neighborhood In the latter case a counterpetition sought to rectify this prejudice but the discriminatory effect had been achieved and Lee looked elsewhere 12 13 Lee practiced as an ear nose and throat doctor for 35 years before retiring in 1990 14 Coaching editFollowing Lee s diving career he helped coach two time diving gold medalist Bob Webster Later he coached Greg Louganis who lived with Lee s family before winning a silver medal in platform diving at the 1976 Olympics at the age of 16 15 Lee also coached Olympic medalist Pat McCormick 16 In 1979 Lee played himself in Silent Victory The Kitty O Neil Story about stuntwoman Kitty O Neil whom Lee had coached in diving 17 In 1996 Lee was interviewed by Huell Howser in California s Gold Episode 702 18 Honors and awards editLee was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1968 and was inducted into the U S Olympic Hall of Fame in 1990 9 19 Sammy Lee Square at the corner of Olympic Boulevard and Normandie Avenue in Los Angeles Koreatown was named after him in 2010 16 20 21 22 He was also honored with a spot on the Anaheim Orange County Walk of Stars in 2009 23 The Los Angeles Unified School District honored Lee by renaming Central Region Elementary School 20 as the Dr Sammy Lee Medical and Health Sciences Magnet School in 2013 24 25 Personal life and death editLee was married to Rosalind Wong 9 the couple had a daughter and had a son 26 Lee died from complications of pneumonia on December 2 2016 at his home in Newport Beach California aged 96 27 He also suffered from dementia and heart disease 28 See also editList of members of the International Swimming Hall of FameReferences edit a b c d Evans Hilary Gjerde Arild Heijmans Jeroen Mallon Bill et al Sammy Lee Olympics at Sports Reference com Sports Reference LLC Archived from the original on April 17 2020 Almasy Steve August 22 2008 After 60 years Olympians are fast friends again CNN Williams Juan amp Halberstam David 2004 My Soul Looks Back in Wonder Voices of the Civil Rights Experience Sterling ISBN 9781402722332 OCLC 61848837 a b c d Aquitania Ray E M D 2011 Jock Docs World Class Athletes Wearing White Coats ISBN 9781609106126 OCLC 743113688 Baker Chris June 16 1990 Physical Spiritual Blights Are Eliminated Swimming Pasadena s new aquatic complex replaces an eyesore lays to rest memories of racism for former Olympian Los Angeles Times Zarnow Teryl October 20 2011 Oral history Telling it like it was Orange County Register Ortiz Erik November 18 2006 Diver shows how guts outweigh skin The sport s first Asian American to win Olympic gold tells pupils about bias and athletics Orange County Register Margolis Jane 2008 Stuck In the Shallow End Education Race and Computing Massachusetts Institute of Technology Press ISBN 9780262260961 OCLC 792730600 a b c d McFadden Robert December 3 2016 Sammy Lee First Asian American to Earn Olympic Gold Dies at 96 The New York Times a b Valerie J Nelson and Nathan Fenno December 3 2016 Sammy Lee diver who became first Asian American to win Olympic medal dies at 96 Los Angeles Times Cabanilla Devin Israel December 15 2016 Media fail to give REAL first Asian American Olympic gold medalist her due The Seattle Globalist Retrieved April 23 2019 Fair Housing In the Cold War Era California State University Fullerton April 28 2011 Special Educational Panel Discussion Covering Fair Housing in Orange County During Cold War Era PDF Fullerton Arboretum May 4 2011 Archived from the original PDF on February 2 2014 Retrieved August 4 2012 Bates Karen Grigsby December 5 2016 Sammy Lee Climbed Above Racism Dove Into Olympic History NPR Nelson Valerie J December 3 2016 Asian American to win Olympic medal dies at 96 The San Diego Union Tribune a b Crowe Jerry May 30 2011 Lee never let racism block his march to diving glory Los Angeles Times Wampler Molly Frick 1987 Not Without Honor The Story of Sammy Lee Fithian Press p 213 ISBN 9780936784373 California Pools California s Gold 702 Huell Howser Archives at Chapman University December 10 1996 Sammy Lee One of Seven Inducted Into U S Olympic Hall of Fame Diving Huntington Beach doctor who won gold medals in 1948 and 52 makes a splash during induction ceremony Los Angeles Times July 7 1990 LA Square Named After Korean American Diver KBS World August 6 2010 Archived from the original on March 22 2012 Retrieved August 14 2010 Sung woo Chun August 9 2010 Sammy Lee Square dedicated in L A to honor diving legend Korea Herald City Council 10 1231 PDF Los Angeles City Council July 22 2010 Tully Sarah May 26 2009 Sammy Lee gets a star and he jokes a headstone Orange County Register Archived from the original on June 26 2012 LAUSD starts new school year with promise excitement Los Angeles Daily News August 13 2013 Plummer Mary May 15 2013 New name for South LA school Diego Rivera Learning Complex flies under the radar KPCC Nelson Valerie J amp Fenno Nathan December 3 2016 Sammy Lee diver who became first Asian American to win Olympic medal dies at 96 Chicago Tribune Retrieved December 4 2016 Sklar Debbie December 3 2016 First Asian American Olympic gold medalist dies in Newport Beach MyNewsLA com Diving Legend Sammy Lee Passes Away At Age 96 Swimming World December 3 2016 Further reading editFernbach Erika 2012 Sammy Lee Promises to Keep CreateSpace Independent Publishing ISBN 978 1482614824 OCLC 984362037 Wampler Molly Frick 1987 Not Without Honor The Story of Sammy Lee Fithian Press ISBN 978 0936784373 OCLC 16130952 Yoo Paula Lee Dom 2010 Sixteen Years in Sixteen Seconds The Sammy Lee Story Lee amp Low Books ISBN 978 1600604539 OCLC 700698663 External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sammy Lee diver Sammy Lee at the USOPC Hall of Fame Sammy Lee at Olympics com nbsp Sammy Lee at Olympic org archived nbsp Sammy Lee at Olympedia nbsp Sammy Lee at HickokSports com at archive today archived 2013 01 25 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Sammy Lee diver amp oldid 1179811103, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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