Pete Desjardins

Pete Desjardins
	Desjardins in 1926, flanked by Arne Borg and Johnny Weissmuller
Personal information
Full name	Ulise Joseph Desjardins
Born	April 12, 1907; St-Pierre-Jolys, Manitoba, Canada
Died	May 6, 1985 (aged 78); Miami, Florida, U.S.
Sport
Sport	Diving
Medal record
Representing United States
Olympic Games

Ulise Joseph "Pete" Desjardins (April 12, 1907 – May 6, 1985) was an American diver who competed in the 1924 and 1928 Summer Olympics.^[1]

Born in St-Pierre-Jolys, Manitoba, Canada, Desjardins grew up in Florida.^[2] In 1924 he won the silver medal in the 3 m springboard competition and finished sixth in the plain high diving event. Four years later, he won gold medals in the 3 meter springboard and 10 meter platform.^[3]

At the 1928 Games Desjardins had the maximum score for two of his springboard dives, but his platform gold medal was unexpected. Farid Simaika from Egypt initially won the competition, and the Egyptian anthem was already being played at the award ceremony, when the judges reconsidered their scoring and placed Desjardins first.^[3]

Desjardins studied economics at Stanford University and is a member of the Stanford Athletic Hall of Fame, though he never won a collegiate championship. He performed swimming exhibitions in the Billy Rose's Aquacade, together with Johnny Weissmuller, Martha Norelius and Helen Meany,^[4] for which he was declared a professional. He continued to appear in the Aquacade until World War II, and later performed in diving shows through the 1960s.^[3]

References

^ "Pete Desjardins". Olympedia. Retrieved October 13, 2021.
^ "Pete Desjardins". HickokSports.com. Archived from the original on February 23, 2002. Retrieved November 24, 2007.
^ ^a ^b ^c Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Pete Desjardins". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on April 17, 2020.
^ Migdol, Gary (1997). Stanford: Home of Champions. Sports Publishing LLC. p. 77. ISBN 1-57167-116-1.