Adolph Kiefer is an icon in the world of swimming and he should be everywhere else!

At the age of 16, he became the first to break the one-minute mark in the 100-yard backstroke. When he won gold at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, Hitler himself insisted on being introduced to Kiefer. “If I had any idea of what he was about to do, I’d have thrown him in the pool,” Kiefer told Growing Bolder.

In more than 2,000 races, Kiefer only lost twice. Hollywood came calling, wanting him to audition for the role of Tarzan, but he chose to defend his country instead, joining the U.S. Navy. He taught a survival course to more than 33,000 sailors.

After the war, he started a company that specialized in safety training and equipment and now, at the age of 90, he’s still running the company with the same passion he had for competing and he’s still hitting the pool almost every day.

He truly is an unsung American hero and a textbook example of the Growing Bolder spirit.

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