Pat McCormick, a Seal Beach native who grew up practicing diving from Long Beach bridges and went on to win two gold medals at both the 1952 and 1956 Summer Olympics, has died. She was 92.
McCormick, who also won the James E. Sullivan Award for best amateur athlete in the US in 1956 – becoming only the second woman to do so — and served on the organizing committee for the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, died on Tuesday, March 7, at died in an assisted living home in Santa Ana from natural causes.
McCormick and fellow U.S. Olympian Greg Louganis are the only divers to snare gold in both the springboard and platform events at multiple Olympics. McCormick held the Olympic record of four diving gold medals — until Louganis tied her by capturing his fourth in 1988.
McCormick parlayed her Olympic success into a career as a motivational speaker for young people.
“She was a motivational speaker,” said her daughter, Kelly McCormick, who was also an Olympic diver, “who taught young people in low-income areas to surround themselves with good people.”
Patricia Joan Keller McCormick was born on May 12, 1930, in Seal Beach.
She attended Woodrow Wilson High School, Long Beach City College and California State Long Beach.
By practicing her dives off Long Beach bridges, she was able to learn to execute those that were not allowed in competition for female divers.
Friends and family agreed that what she achieved as a result of her gold medals was what she was most proud of.
“Peter Ueberroth, the organizer of the 1984 Summer Olympics held in Los Angeles, suggested Pat form a non-profit to motivate young people,” friend Tracy Roberts Mackey said in a phone interview. Ueberroth met McCormick when she served on the 1984 Organizing committee.
Pat’s Champs was the name of the foundation she formed to help motivate kids to dream big and to set practical ways to succeed.
According to Bob Griffith (Bob of Bobs Rexall on Main Street in Seal Beach) she traveled all…
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