Harvard Business School Alumni

HBS Olympians

Keith Larson | Sep 18, 2008

While watching the spectacular and only slightly enhanced (digitally and chemically) Olympics, I found myself wondering how many HBS Olympians there have been over the years. I could think of only one—Paul Wylie (MBA 2000C), who won a silver medal in figure skating in the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France—but I was sure there were more. Who were they? When I saw a list of about 200 Harvard College Olympians, my zeal to compile a list of HBS Olympians was awakened.

I turned to the marvelous search engine on the HBS Web site (see the upper right corner of this page, which searches all pages of the HBS site, including class notes), plugged in “Olympics,” and got 1,444 hits, most of them about alums or their family members involved in carrying the Olympic Torch; organizing, supplying, cooking for, securing, coaching, marketing, or seeing the Olympic Games; or participating in the Paralympics, Golden Age Olympics, Senior Olympics, Junior Olympics, Special Olympics, or HBS Section Olympics. But I did mine the following nuggets about actual HBS Olympic athletes from the HBS Web site and the Harvard College list. The nuggets are arranged below by degrees and then chronologically. Please let me know about Olympians in your class or section who are missing here.

• Dick Davies (AMP 93, 1998) was a member of the US basketball team that won a gold medal at the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo. More information here.
• James Madden (MBA 1934) competed for the US in men’s singles figure skating at the 1932 Olympics at Lake Placid, NY, and in mixed pairs (with his sister) at the 1936 Winter Olympics at Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. More information here.
• Milton Greene (MBA 1938), a US hurdler who was considered a lock to go to the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, boycotted them because of Hitler’s treatment of the Jews. More information here.
• Sam Felton (MBA 1950) competed for the US in the hammer throw at the 1948 London Olympics and the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. More information here.
• Brooks Dodge (MBA 1958) competed on the US Alpine Skiing team in men’s downhill, slalom, and giant slalom in the 1952 Olympics in Oslo and in men’s slalom and giant slalom in the 1956 Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy. More information here.
• David Hawkins (MBA 1958) swam the 200 meter breaststroke for the Australian team at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. More information here.
• Don Beer (MBA 1959) won a gold medal for the US in 8-man rowing at the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne. More information here.
• Tom Courtney (MBA 1959) won two gold medals (in the 800 meter and the 4x400 meter relay) for the US team at the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne. More information here.
• Bob Stinson (MBA 1959) competed for the US in mixed 5.5 meter yacht sailing in the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne. More information here.
• Jim Wolfensohn (MBA 1959) was a fencer on the Australian team at the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne. More information here.
• Phil Conley (MBA 1962) competed for the US in the javelin in the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne. More information here.
• Vic Emery (MBA 1962) won a gold medal for Canada in the 4-man bobsled at the 1964 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria. More information here.
• Bob Morey (MBA 1962) won a gold medal for the US as stroke-oar on Yale’s coxed eights rowing team in the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne.
• Jerry Ashworth (MBA 1967F) won a gold medal in the 4x100 meter relay at the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo. More information here.
• Bill Becklean (MBA 1968C) won a gold medal for the US as stroke-oar on Yale’s coxed eights rowing team (which included Bob Morey, MBA 1962) at the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne. More information here.
• Geoffrey Picard (MBA 1969C) won a bronze medal in rowing for the US in men’s coxless fours at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. More information here.
• Neville Hayes (MBA 1969D) won two silver medals for Australia at the 1960 Olympics in Rome: in the 200 meter butterfly and the 4x100 meter medley relay. More information here.
• Jack Morrison (MBA 1971H) played on the US Olympic hockey team at the 1968 Olympics at Grenoble, France. More information and photos here.
• Fritz Hobbs (MBA 1972E) competed on the US coxed eights rowing team at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City and won a silver in the same event at the 1972 Munich Olympics. More information here.
• Bruce Hunter (MBA 1974K), swimming for the US, competed in the 100 meter freestyle at the 1960 Rome Olympics. More information here and here.
• Bill Hobbs (MBA 1975C), Fritz’s brother, competed on the US men’s rowing team in coxed pairs at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City and won a silver medal on the US coxed eights rowing team (with his brother) at the 1972 Munich Olympics. More information here.
• John Kinsella (MBA 1976B), swimming for the US, won a silver medal in the men's 1,500 meter freestyle in the1968 Olympics in Mexico City and a gold medal in the men's 4x200 meter freestyle relay in the 1972 Olympics in Munich. More information here.
• Brian Job (MBA 1977D) won a bronze medal for the US in the 200 meter breaststroke at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City and competed in the same event at the 1972 Munich Olympics. More information here.
• Charles Hamlin (MBA 1978C) rowed for the US in the men’s coxless fours at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics. More information here.
• Tony Brooks (MBA 1979F) was on the US rowing team at the 1972 Munich Olympics and rowed for the US in the men’s coxless fours at the 1976 Montreal Olympics. More information here and here.
• Richard George (MBA 1979F) competed for the US in the javelin at the 1976 Montreal Olympics. More information here.
• Richard Cashin (MBA 1980D) competed for the US rowing team in men’s coxed eights at the 1976 Montreal Olympics. More information here.
• Pär Arvidsson (MBA 1985F) won a gold medal for Sweden in the 100-meter butterfly in the 1980 Moscow Olympics. More information here.
• Robert Hackett (MBA 1986B), swimming for the US, won a silver medal in the 1500 meter freestyle at the 1976 Montreal Olympics. More information here.
• Michael Storm (MBA 1989I) won a silver medal in the modern pentathlon team competition, and competed in the modern pentathlon individual competition, at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. More information here.
• Mark Fusco (MBA 1990D) played on the US men’s ice hockey team at the 1984 Olympics in Sarajevo. More information here.
• Steve Trevor (MBA 1992I) competed for US fencing in individual and team men’s épée in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics and the 1988 Seoul Olympics. More information here.
• Patrick Manning (MBA 1994D), rowing for the US, won a silver medal in coxless mens’ fours at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona. More information here and here.
• John Davison (MBA 1994G) competed in skeet shooting for Great Britain in the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. More information here.
• Ian McKerlich (MBA 1994H) rowed for Canada in the men's coxed pairs in the 1988 Seoul Olympics. More information here.
• Julia Trotman Brady (MBA 1997B), sailing for the US, won a bronze medal in women’s single-handed dinghy at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. More information here and here.
• Norman Bellingham (MBA 1998A) competed for the US in the 1,000 meter men's kayak fours at the 1984 Olympics in LA, won a gold medal in the 1,000 meter men's kayak doubles at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, and competed at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona in the 500 meter men's kayak singles and the 1,000 meter doubles. He’s now COO of the US Olympic Committee. More information here.
• Paul Wylie (MBA 2000C) competed for the US in men’s figure skating at the 1988 Calgary Olympics and won a silver medal in figure skating in the 1992 Olympics in Albertville, France. More information here.
• Mike Murphy (MBA 2006B) competed for Australia in men’s three-meter springboard diving at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics and the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. A Harbus interview with him here.
• Malcolm Baker (PhDBE, 2000) rowed for the US in men’s coxed eights at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. More information here and here.
• David Fellows (PMD 55, 1988) rowed for the US team in men’s coxed eights at the 1976 Montreal Olympics. More information here.
• Ådne Søndrål (PMD 78, 2003), competing for Norway in 1500 meter long-track speed skating, won a silver medal at the 1992 Olympics in Albertville, France, fourth place in the 1994 Olympics at Lillehammer, Norway, a gold medal at the 1998 Olympics in Nagano, Japan, and a bronze medal at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics. More information here.

Every four years I’m inspired by the Olympics (a pioneering example of globalization, come to think of it) and its motto, Citior! Altior! Fortior!, but never so much as to stray from my sluggish habits. I am ready to compete in the next “Olumpics,” though, in prone TV watching, synchronized skepticism, scone scarfing, and jumping to conclusions!

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