Background
Lysak was born in Bound Brook, New Jersey on August 16, 1914.
Lysak was born in Bound Brook, New Jersey on August 16, 1914.
After a stint in the United States Marine Corps during World World War II, Lysak attended Springfield College and worked as a painting contractor until the age of 62.
As of 2008 he is the San Francisco Bay Area"s oldest living former United States Olympian. The Lysak brothers, however, were sent to an orphanage in New Jersey for two years, before being transferred to Yonkers, New New York In their spare time, the duo constructed homemade boats along the Hudson River using tar paper and barrel staves.
They soon joined a local rowing club after their talent caught the attention of the members.
On their journey to Berlin, Lysak and O"Rourke destroyed much of the equipment in the ship"s gymnasium and were prohibited from entering it for most of the trip. Lysak competed with O"Rourke in Men"s Folding Kayak Doubles, 10 kilometres, on a lake just outside the capital city.
While observing some of the athletic events, he claims to have witnessed Adolf Hitler refusing to congratulate or shake the hand of Jesse Owens. On the return journey to the United States, Lysak encountered Owens and inquired about the incident.
According to Lysak, Owens responded that "that kind of thing had been going on his whole life.
He"d gotten used to lieutenant" After the games, Lysak never returned to Europe. He served as a United States Marine during World World War II in the South Pacific. After the war, Lysak moved to California to work as a painting contractor, until he retired at the age of 62.
As of 2008 he is the San Francisco Bay Area"s oldest living former Olympian, although he does not display any memorabilia from the games in his house.