Joe Pitman

Joe Pitman was one of the great US weightlifters in the late 1940s and 1950s. He won the AAU lightweight championship for 10 of 11 years, winning in 1947-51 and 1953-57, missing only 1952 when it was won by Tommy Kono. Internationally, Pitman won the 1950 World Championship, and was second at Worlds in 1949 and 1951. He also won gold medals at the 1951 and 1955 Pan American Games.

Pitman served in the US Navy during World War II. He became a teacher and principal with the Indian River County School System in Florida. Pitman graduated from Shippensburg University and later received a master’s degree from Stetson University in 1959. After retiring from the school system, he was employed by Island Home Care for 18 years.