 Wahle in 1901 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| National team |  Austrian Empire |
| Born | 5 November 1879 Vienna, Austrian Empire |
| Died | 11 August 1963 (aged 83) Forest Hills, Queens, New York, U.S. |
Medal record | |
Otto Wahle (5 November 1879 – 11 August 1963) was an Austrian-American swimmer[1] who took part in two Summer Olympic Games and won a total of three medals.[2] Wahle coached the men's US swim team at the 1912 Olympics, and the men's US water polo team at the 1920 and 1924 Olympics.[3]
At age 20, Wahle competed in three events at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris, France.[1][4] He competed in the 200 metre freestyle and won his heat, but, for an unknown reason, he did not compete in the final.[5] He also entered the 1000 metre freestyle; in his heat he came second behind Hungarian swimmer Zoltán Halmay, but he still qualified for the final the next day.[6] In the final he was beaten by John Arthur Jarvis from Great Britain but finished ahead of Halmay to win the silver medal.[7] Wahle also won a silver medal in the 200 metre obstacle event. After winning his heat,[8] Wahle missed the gold medal by under two seconds to Australian swimmer Frederick Lane.[9]
In 1901, Wahle moved to New York City and was taken in by the New York Athletic Club.[2][10] Three years later, he competed at the 1904 Summer Olympics.[11][1] The Games were held in St. Louis, Missouri, and again Wahle entered three events. He finished in fourth place in the 1 mile freestyle,[12] and he finished in fifth place in the 880 yard freestyle.[13] Wahle won a bronze medal in the 440 yard freestyle, finishing behind Charles Daniels and Francis Gailey.[14]
In 1906, Wahle became a US citizen. He became the American swimming team coach for the 1912 Summer Olympics, where he coached future Gen. George S. Patton Jr. for the swimming event in the pentathlon.[15] At the 1920 and 1924 Summer Olympics, he was the coach of the American water polo team.[2][10]
Wahle played a major role in the growth of swimming as a competitive sport in the United States and wrote many of the rules listed in early Amateur Athletic Union manuals.[15]
He died in 1963 in Forest Hills, Queens, and was inducted in to the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1968.[10][2] In 1990, he was inducted into the USA Water Polo Hall of Fame.[16][17]
