Sports
Norbert Schemansky
1924–2016 · weightlifter
Detroit-born weightlifter, the first to win four Olympic medals in the sport, who lived most of his life in nearby Dearborn, where a park is named for him.
- Born
Detroit, Michigan- Died
Dearborn, Michigan
aged 92- Also known as
- Ski
- Detroit years
- 1924–2016
- Field
- Sports
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Schemansky was born and raised in Detroit and built his strength in the city's Polish-American west-side neighborhoods before becoming one of the greatest weightlifters the United States has produced. Between 1948 and 1964 he won an Olympic silver, a gold and two bronze medals despite missing the 1956 Games entirely because of a back injury, a comeback story that made him a symbol of endurance in the sport. He settled in Dearborn in 1959 and stayed there for the rest of his life, working locally and remaining part of the metro Detroit sports community into old age. He died in Dearborn in 2016 at ninety-two, and the city named a park in his honor.
Highlights
- First weightlifter to win four Olympic medals
- Olympic silver (1948), gold (1952) and bronze (1960, 1964)
- Missed the 1956 Olympics due to a back injury, then returned to medal twice more
- A Dearborn city park is named in his honor
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 1
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Memorial · present
Norbert Schemansky Park
A city park in Dearborn named in his honor; exact address not verified for this entry.