DR. THOMAS WADDELL

DR. THOMAS WADDELL ATHLETE, PHYSICIAN

A track star, Waddell upset stereotypes of homosexuals as unathletic and became a strong role model for younger gay men.

Born Tom Flubacher in Paterson, New Jersey, in 1937, he later took the surname Waddell from foster parents. An outstanding athlete during his school years, he graduated from Springfield College (1959) and the New Jersey College of Medicine (1965). In the Army he trained for the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, where he competed in the decathlon and came in sixth. While practicing medicine he continued to compete in track events.

In Sports Illustrated, the noted commentator Dick Schaap wrote that Waddell was the most impressive athlete he had ever met and perhaps the most impressive human being. "He combined strength and sensitivity, intelligence and courage, compassion and competitiveness in dazzling doses. He contradicted all the stereotypes of both the athlete and the homosexual." To father a child Waddell married a friend, Sara Lewinstein, and they had a daughter. In 1982 he established the Gay Olympic Games, intended primarily for homosexuals but open to everyone. Although the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC) permits such events as the Senior Olympics, K-9 Olympics, and Rat Olympics, it protested use of the term "olympic" in a gay context. When the matter went to court, the USOC put a lien on Waddell's home to cover its legal costs. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the USOC shortly before Waddell died of AIDS, July 11,1987. The word "olympic" was denied to his Gay Games, but on a panel in the AIDS Memorial Quilt (see card 106) he is "Dr. Thomas Waddell, United States Olympic Hero." Next Card 55: RYAN WHITE: Student

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