For almost 75 years, Andrew “Andy” J. Burke (1929–2020) has served the water polo community as a player, coach, team leader, organizer, advisor,
board member, administrator and referee. He joined The Olympic Club as a junior member in 1945. His swim coach, fellow OC Hall of Famer George Schroth, introduced Burke to water polo and the rest, as they say, is history.
Burke swam and played water polo at Stockton College, and then joined the competitive club team. The OC squad finished second at the Pan American Trials in 1955 and 1959, the Olympic Trials in 1956 and 1960 and the AAU Outdoor Championships in 1952, ‘55, ‘56, ‘58 and 1960. They brought the outdoor title home in 1957 and 1959, while amassing 63 wins to only six losses in that three-year span. The 1957–59 team was inducted into the OC Hall of Fame in 2011.
He retired from competition in 1960, but took over as coach from 1961 to 1970. The team finished second in the AAU Indoors in 1962 and 1963. Burke continues to be an organizer for our growing OC water polo program, including serving as team leader for the OC teams at the FINA World Masters Championships since 1998, helping the Club bring home 18 medals.
In addition to water polo, Burke was active in the Spin & Swim and OC basketball leagues for over 40 years. Not only did he play basketball in all the leagues, but he helped expand the basketball program into several Masters age brackets. He continues to assist the new Platinum team. He served on numerous standing committees, including Junior, Building, Properties and Athletic committees. He helped establish both the History & Archives committee and the Hall of Fame. He joined the Board of Directors in 1992 and served as the Vice President in 1994.
Burke was one of the seven original directors of what is now the Olympic Club Foundation, serving on the Board for over a decade. He is currently a trustee for the Peter J. Cutino Award. He also received the President’s Award in 1999, for outstanding service, and the Olympian Award in 2016, for athletic achievement and contribution to the Club.
His tireless enthusiasm and remarkable administrative skills have led to his involvement in numerous national and international championships, committees and boards for six decades. He has been active in all aspects of the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), Pacific Coast water polo, and the United States Aquatic Sports (USAS). Burke has been a member of the Amateur Swimming Union of the America’s (ASUA) water polo committee or executive board for almost three decades, in USA Water Polo leadership for four decades and was a member of the U.S. Olympic House of Delegates for four terms between 1977 and 1990. As tournament director and later a consultant, he helped run the water polo portions of the FINA World Masters Championships from 2004–2012.
Other highlights of his contributions to the sport include chairing the water polo sub-committee for the U.S. Olympic Committee from 1960–64, serving as team manager for the 1964 U.S. Olympic team and the U.S. water polo team at the first FINA World Championships in Belgrade in 1973 and serving as Chef d’Mission to lead the U.S. delegation at the 1991 FINA World Championships.
His knowledge, commitment and integrity have made him an invaluable part of the water polo community. He has been honored by the International Swimming Hall of Fame three times, most recently as a contributor in May 2018. He continues to support the Club, referee for local high schools and spend time with his wife, Carolyn, four children and 14 grandchildren.
